The US has cleared the sale of predator Guardian drones to India, as President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday pledged to deepen their defence and security cooperation.
The US and India look forward to working together on advanced defence equipment and technology at a level commensurate with that of America’s closest allies and partners, said a joint statement issued after the India US Summit at the White House.
On June 22, it was reported that the sale of 22 predator Guardian drones has been cleared by the United States in order to boost Indian Navy’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.
Here is all you need to know:
- The Indian Navy made the request for Predator Guardian UAV last year.
- The deal was estimated to be worth USD two to three billion (Rs 19,339 crore approx). According to White House, the completion of these sales would increase bilateral defence trade to nearly USD 19 billion (1,22,000 crore approx), supporting thousands of US jobs.
- The Predator Guardian UAV, a variant of the Predator B, can be used for wide-area, long- endurance maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
- It can stay in the air for up to 27 hours and can fly at maximum altitude of 50,000 feet.
- The engine of the aircraft is integrated with Digital Electronic Engine Control (DEEC) which enhances the performance of the engine. The system also prevents wasteful consumption of fuel at lower altitudes.
- The Guardian has cutting edge technologies that do not exist in the current Indian Navy arsenal.
- This maritime capability will be a force multiplier for the Indian Navy who has procured other advance technologies including Boeing P-8 aircraft.
- Presently it is used by U.S. Air Force, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, NASA, the Royal Air Force, the Italian Air Force, the French Air Force and the Spanish Air Force, reports General Atomics Aeronautical.
(With inputs from PTI)