India has successfully closed the deal to buy four new Heron (TP) MK II UAV's from Israel that will initially be used in surveillance and reconnaissance missions, but will eventually be upgraded and armed with missiles for precision strikes under Project Cheetah when it kicks off.
The drones will be arriving by the end of this year. Initially, the plan was to lease the four drones from Israel, India later decided to buy them instead. This is due to the current volatile situation at the borders with China in Eastern Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh and recent tensions in Uttarakhand. New Delhi will be buying four Heron MK II UAVs from Israel Aerospace Industries and will deploy them to the area for surveillance purposes.
Indian Air Force is working on a plan called “Project Cheetah,” which will see 90 Heron drones flying with the Indian Air Force, Indian Army, and Indian Navy be upgraded with laser-guided bombs, air-to-ground and air-launched anti-tank guided missiles.
The Indian Air Force already operates more than 180 Israeli-made UAVs, including 108 IAI-made Searchers and 68 unarmed Heron 1s for surveillance and intelligence gathering as well as a fleet of IAI-produced Harpy UAVs, which carry a high-explosive warhead and self-destructs to take out targets such as radar stations.
The Heron is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial system (UAS) for strategic and tactical missions. It carries six diverse mission payloads simultaneously allowing complex intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions over any terrain, including forests, jungles or swamps, at sea or over urban areas. Fitted with a Rotax 915 iS engine, the Heron MK II can reach an altitude of over 10,000 meters, a maximum speed of 140 knots, and can remain in the air for 45 consecutive hours.
The Heron MK II is an updated model of the Heron UAV, which is also used by the Israel Air Force and is operational with over 20 other organizations around the world. With larger and improved sensors, the standout feature of the Heron MK II is its standoff capability, gathering intelligence from tens of kilometers away from enemy fire and without crossing borders. The UAV also has an onboard server, enabling operators to access large amounts of raw or processed sensor data stored on the flight. The maximum takeoff weight for the Heron MK II is 1,350 kg. with a payload weight of 470 kg., and it has a maximum speed of 140 knots compared to the 120 knots of the Heron MK I.
India has also been looking to buy 30 MQ-9 Predator B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) armed drones from the US, 10 for each of the defence services, costing a total of $3 billion.
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