USA and India Sign Historic Agreement For Military UAV
USA and India Sign Historic Agreement For Military UAV
India, U.S. signed co-development agreement for Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle: Defence Ministry
It is a significant step towards deepening defense technology collaboration between the two nations through co-development of defense equipment, says a statement
India and the United States had signed a Project Agreement at the end of July for Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle under the ambit of the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative, the Defence Ministry said on Friday.
The PA was signed between the Ministry of Defence and the U.S. Department of Defence by the co-chairs of the Joint Working Group on Air Systems, under the DTTI on July 30.
“The PA outlines the collaboration between Air Force Research Laboratory, Indian Air Force, and Defence Research and Development Organisation towards design, development, demonstration, testing, and evaluation of systems to co-develop an ALUAV prototype,” a Ministry statement said.
The PA for the ALUAV fell under the Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation Memorandum of Agreement between MoD and U.S. DoD, which was first signed in January 2006 and renewed in January 2015, the statement said. It was a significant step towards deepening defense technology collaboration between the two nations through the co-development of defense equipment, it stated.
The main aim of the DTTI is to bring sustained leadership focus to promote collaborative technology exchange and create opportunities for co-production and co-development of future technologies for Indian and U.S. military forces. Under the DTTI, Joint Working Groups on land, naval, air, and aircraft carrier technologies have been established to focus on mutually agreed projects in respective domains.
The Aeronautical Development Establishment at the Defence Research and Development Organisation and the Aerospace Systems Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory, along with the Indian and U.S. Air Forces, were the principal organizations for the execution of the PA, the statement added.
The DTTI was announced in 2012 as an ambitious initiative for co-production and co-development of military systems but has never really taken off despite several efforts.
In October 2019, as part of efforts to revive the DTTI the two sides had agreed on a joint statement of intent to deepen defense technology cooperation which also outlined specific short, middle, and long-term projects under the DTTI, while the JWG on jet engine cooperation was suspended.
The ALUAV project agreement falls under the research, development, testing, and evaluation (RDT&E) memorandum of agreement between India’s defense ministry and the US defense department.
It was initially signed in January 2006 and then renewed once again in January 2015, according to the release. The agreement is a significant step towards deepening defense technology collaboration between the two nations through mutual cooperation in developing defense equipment.
What is India-US Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI)?
The Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) between India and the US was signed in 2012. The DTTI was established out of the need to transform the bilateral Defence relationship between both nations and also strengthen India’s Defence base.
Under DTTI, Joint Working Groups on land, air, naval, and aircraft carrier technologies have been established to focus on mutually agreed projects in respective domains.
PROJECT AGREEMENT
The Project Agreement (PA) showcases the collaboration between Air Force Research Laboratory, Indian Air Force, and Defence Research and Development Organization during the development, design, demonstration, evaluation, and testing of systems to co-develop a prototype of Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV).
The principal organizations for the execution of the Project Agreement (PA) are the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) at DRDO and the Aerospace Systems Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), along with the Indian and US Air Forces.
Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle are not an ordinary type of drone This is an advanced-level drone which will be dropped from aircraft then it will start functioning.
You will ask, why does this concept seem so attractive? Not only India and the US but all other countries like China, Russian, France, and all other various countries are trying to build this technology.
An unmanned swarm carrier system developed by Chinese company Zhongtian Feilong conducts a test flight in late March. An aerial mother ship drops nine smaller drones in the test flight. Photo: Screenshot from the WeChat account of Zhongtian Feilong
On April 7 – 2021 China released this photo where you can see the mother drone dropping other drones this dropped drone will be activated as soon as it is dropped and it will also start flying. Now you will ask what is the purpose of this type of drones
For example – for bombing think about One enemy in a captured area. There are many areas where you need Suicide bombing drones. The main problem in this type of operation is you can not send your drones to thousands of kilometers away from your land. Almost 1000 km away so how will you send a drone over there.
Simple drones can not flying to thousands of kilometers alone and they also don’t have That much fuel Carrying capacity. In this type of situation, you can use drone-dropping technology.
Indian Hindustan aeronautics limited is also working on a similar project but as of now this is a concept Hindustan aeronautics is working on this but on the ground level, there are many improvements required. This U.S. India agreement will definitely will be helpful for India to develop this technology.
The US already has given this technique to Various US-based private companies and they are working on such drones.
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