Indian Air Force News and Discussions ll
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ThoroughPro
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corruption and kickbacks
Nimble
Registered Member
Thank god they haven't changed original plan to procure 57 Rafale Marines.... given the size of Indian navy and area it has to defend 26 Marines with 35 to 40 MIG29 Ks was actually not sufficient... still it's low but good than having just 26...
Nimble
Registered Member
Bro don't entertain them.... this is Indian airforce NEWS thread and they are deliberately trying to derail thread so you get banned.... remove their oxygen mask on this thread....
Jaeger
Registered Member
India set for $2bn drone order in biggest buy
Reuters Published June 4, 2026 Updated about 2 hours ago
This file photo shows Falcon, a surveillance drone, on display at the drone exhibition at Bharat Drone Shakti 2023 organised by the Indian Air Force and Drone Federation of India at the Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad, India on September 25, 2023. — Reuters/File
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NEW DELHI: India is likely to order more than $2 billion worth of military drones from domestic firms this year in its biggest such purchase, an industry body working with the government said, as global and regional conflicts boost demand.
The plans are in advanced stages with deliveries expected over 18 to 24 months, for a jump in value from recent government orders worth 30 billion rupees ($313 million) for tactical-class drones, said Smit Shah, president of the body.
“In the next phase, tactical drone procurements in India may exceed 200 billion rupees, or more than $2 billion,” said Shah, whose Drone Federation India represents more than 550 companies and works closely with the government.
Shah said the new orders may follow a fast-track procurement route designed to meet urgent operational needs, with deliveries probably needed within 24 months.
The country has 600 firms making drones, with more than 100 focused on defence applications
Drones in spotlight
India’s push follows clashes with arch-rival Pakistan in May last year, when both sides deployed unmanned aerial vehicles at scale for the first time, highlighting the offensive potential of low-cost drones. The conflicts in Ukraine and Iran have further sped adoption globally, driving down costs and reshaping battlefield tactics.
In March, the defence ministry approved a proposal worth about 2.38 trillion rupees ($24.85 billion) to buy transport aircraft, missile systems and “remotely piloted strike aircraft”, or armed drones, without giving a spending breakdown.
“Drones are force multipliers on the modern battlefield,” said Ramesh Chandra Padhi, an executive at IG Defence, a builder of advanced unmanned aerial and short-range missile systems.
“The Indian army is following emergency or fast-track procurement to expedite the induction of drones on a very large scale,” the former senior army officer added.
India’s exploding drone industry
India has more than 600 firms making drones and components, with more than 100 focused on defence applications. The companies range from large players such as Adani Group, Larsen & Toubro and Tata Advanced Systems to startups like ideaForge, Newspace Research and Asteria Aerospace. They work on building reconnaissance, logistics, loitering munition, precision-strike and critical component systems.
In recent years, India has overhauled a typically slow defence procurement process to allow faster acquisition of drones, particularly after clashes with Pakistan exposed gaps in surveillance and strike capabilities.
New Delhi has started relying on emergency procurement powers and swifter efforts under the Defence Acquisition Procedure, compressing timelines to months instead of years.
At the same time, in its push to boost domestic manufacturing, it is giving priority to systems made at home. The government has also expanded schemes such as Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) to fund prototypes and enable smaller firms to win initial orders and help scale up production quicker.
Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2026
Reuters Published June 4, 2026 Updated about 2 hours ago
This file photo shows Falcon, a surveillance drone, on display at the drone exhibition at Bharat Drone Shakti 2023 organised by the Indian Air Force and Drone Federation of India at the Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad, India on September 25, 2023. — Reuters/File
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NEW DELHI: India is likely to order more than $2 billion worth of military drones from domestic firms this year in its biggest such purchase, an industry body working with the government said, as global and regional conflicts boost demand.
The plans are in advanced stages with deliveries expected over 18 to 24 months, for a jump in value from recent government orders worth 30 billion rupees ($313 million) for tactical-class drones, said Smit Shah, president of the body.
“In the next phase, tactical drone procurements in India may exceed 200 billion rupees, or more than $2 billion,” said Shah, whose Drone Federation India represents more than 550 companies and works closely with the government.
Shah said the new orders may follow a fast-track procurement route designed to meet urgent operational needs, with deliveries probably needed within 24 months.
The country has 600 firms making drones, with more than 100 focused on defence applications
Drones in spotlight
India’s push follows clashes with arch-rival Pakistan in May last year, when both sides deployed unmanned aerial vehicles at scale for the first time, highlighting the offensive potential of low-cost drones. The conflicts in Ukraine and Iran have further sped adoption globally, driving down costs and reshaping battlefield tactics.
In March, the defence ministry approved a proposal worth about 2.38 trillion rupees ($24.85 billion) to buy transport aircraft, missile systems and “remotely piloted strike aircraft”, or armed drones, without giving a spending breakdown.
“Drones are force multipliers on the modern battlefield,” said Ramesh Chandra Padhi, an executive at IG Defence, a builder of advanced unmanned aerial and short-range missile systems.
“The Indian army is following emergency or fast-track procurement to expedite the induction of drones on a very large scale,” the former senior army officer added.
India’s exploding drone industry
India has more than 600 firms making drones and components, with more than 100 focused on defence applications. The companies range from large players such as Adani Group, Larsen & Toubro and Tata Advanced Systems to startups like ideaForge, Newspace Research and Asteria Aerospace. They work on building reconnaissance, logistics, loitering munition, precision-strike and critical component systems.
In recent years, India has overhauled a typically slow defence procurement process to allow faster acquisition of drones, particularly after clashes with Pakistan exposed gaps in surveillance and strike capabilities.
New Delhi has started relying on emergency procurement powers and swifter efforts under the Defence Acquisition Procedure, compressing timelines to months instead of years.
At the same time, in its push to boost domestic manufacturing, it is giving priority to systems made at home. The government has also expanded schemes such as Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) to fund prototypes and enable smaller firms to win initial orders and help scale up production quicker.
Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2026
Ali_Baba
VIP Member
Drones at this scale will be a problem for Pakistan, esp if they are fibre optic controlled. Lets not ignore the threat this represents and how Pakistan can try and counter this ( everyone is scrambling for countermeasures right now ).
Yasser76
Elite Member
Yeah, see your point, and Hezballah are scarfing the shit out of the Israelis with their FPVs yet this may not be so applicable to India-Pak for a few reasons
1) We are not having troops occupying their territory or very close to their borders so range will be an issue
2) For any decent impact against infantry they will need a very large number all operated by large numbers of troops, unsure the maths works out, especially also in fast moving armoured warfare each side will be moving at pace
3) They will be operated by Indians
Desprado123
Registered Member
This is the reason why Pakistan also working on anti drone system which some post posted x accounts.
LC150
Registered Member
Pakistan is not only investing drone but anti drone tech... dont worry boys at PAF are on top of this.
lightoftruth
Trusted Member
Well, I’m certainly relieved now; after all, as a "mega indigenous fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft," it naturally stands a much better chance of actually being realized—so I might even live to see it fly.
Perhaps the Tejas Mk.1A and—above all—the Mk. 2 program should also be designated "MEGA"—or better yet, "MIGA"—so that something finally comes of them?
LC150
Registered Member
Yasser76
Elite Member
Basic EW jammed your Rafales? That is a big self own dude....
peacemaker99
Registered Member
Indian Rafales had no indigenous systems. They were all OEM, french, NATO standard equipment.
So what you said is STUNNING and MASSIVE. PAF jammed nato standard equipment and brought india to its knees ! Tomorrow Anerican jets wont know what hit them !
I hope you use all this power for greater good!
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