India seals $4 billion deal to procure 31 Predator drones from US

Boost to military! India seals deal for 31 Predator drones from US-based General Atomics

India on Tuesday sealed a mega deal with the United States to procure 31 Predator high-altitude long-endurance drones from American defence major General Atomics under the foreign military sales route at a cost of nearly USD 4 billion. The deal, signed in the presence of top defence and strategic brass of India in the national capital, marks a significant upswing in military ties between the two countries.

Besides the main contract, a separate agreement was inked between the defence ministry and General Atomics Global India Pvt Ltd for performance-based logistics for the drones through depot-level maintenance, repair, and overhaul of the platforms in India. Last week, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared the procurement of the MQ-9B ‘hunter-killer’ drones.

Vivek Lall, the Chief Executive of General Atomics Global Corporation who played a key role in the negotiations on the deal, was present at the signing ceremony. The drones are being procured at an estimated cost of around USD 4 billion, the officials said. India is acquiring drones primarily to crank up the surveillance apparatus of the armed forces, especially along the contested frontier with China.

In June last year, the Defence Ministry approved the procurement of the MQ-9B Predator armed drones from the US under a government-to-government framework. The MQ-9B drone is a variant of the MQ-9 “Reaper” which was used to launch a modified version of the Hellfire missile that eliminated al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in the heart of Kabul in July 2022.

While the Navy will get 15 Sea Guardian drones, the Indian Air Force and the Army will get eight Sky Guardian drones each. The high-altitude long-endurance drones are capable of remaining airborne for over 35 hours and can carry four Hellfire missiles and around 450 kgs of bombs. The Sea Guardian drones are being procured as they can carry out a variety of roles including maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare, and over-the-horizon targeting, among others.

In June 2016, the US designated India a “Major Defence Partner” paving the way for sharing of critical military equipment and technology. The two countries have also inked key defence and security pacts over the past few years, including the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) in 2016 that allows their militaries to use each other’s bases for repair and replenishment of supplies.

The two sides also signed COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement) in 2018 which provides for interoperability between the two militaries and provides for the sale of high-end technology from the US to India. In October 2020, India and the US sealed the BECA (Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement) to further boost bilateral defence ties. The pact provides for the sharing of high-end military technology, logistics, and geospatial maps between the two countries.

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