MQ-9B Drone [UPSC Notes]

India is planning to acquire 31 high altitude long endurance (HALE) drones from the US to induct them to protect land and maritime frontiers. In this article, you can read all about this arms acquisition from the US, and the details of the drones being acquired. This topic is important for the IAS exam security and defence segment of GS paper III.

MQ-9B Armed Drones

The MQ-9B drone is a variant of the MQ-9 “Reaper” and it has two variants, SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian.

• The MQ-9B drone comes with nine hardpoints capable of carrying sensors and laser-guided bombs, besides air-to-ground missiles. 
• The MQ-9B drone has an endurance of over 27 hours and can operate up to 50,000 ft high with a 3,850-pound (1,746 kg) payload capacity.
• The drone is capable of carrying multiple payloads such as Electro-optical/Infrared (EO/IR), Lynx, Multi-mode Radar, multi-mode maritime surveillance radar, Electronic Support Measures (ESM), laser designators, and various weapons and payload packages.
• The role of the Sea Guardian drone comprises maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare and over-the-horizon targeting.

Acquisition of Drones

In June 2023, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved a tri-service proposal to acquire a total of 31 drones.

• Of the acquisition of a total of 31 drones from the US, 15 will be MQ9B Sea Guardians and 16 Sky Guardian drones.
• The Sea Guardian drones will be responsible for maritime surveillance and domain awareness while the Sky Guardian drones will be used for guarding the land frontiers. 
• The total cost of acquisition will be $ 3 billion and the acquisition route will be through US foreign military sales or the government-to-government route.
• The acquisition will be in a phased manner with initial absorption of technology and the first consignment of drones will be limited to 10 in number with weapons and missiles following at a later stage.
• The deal will also have localization measures in order to ensure the synchronisation of Indian-built munitions.
• Acquisition of bombs and missiles for the drones will be done in the later stages of the deal as all drones need not be armed.   
• India already operates two sea guardian drones on lease and the Indian Navy is satisfied with the performance of leased drones which provide real-time maritime domain awareness from Southeast Asia to Africa.

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