The two MQ-9B drones leased by the Indian Navy from US defence major General Atomics were spotted in satellite imagery for the first time. The drones were spotted at INS Rajali, an Indian naval air station located near Arakkonam in the Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu, by Damien Symon, an analyst with The Intel Lab.
The drones were leased at the peak of the tensions between India and China in eastern Ladakh and arrived at INS Rajali sometime in November 2020.
The lease of the two non-weaponised drones came in the midst of India’s plans to procure up to 30 weaponised versions of the Sea Guardian drones from the US to bolster the Navy’s overall surveillance capabilities in the Indian Ocean amid an increase in Chinese presence in the region.
In September 2020, the Narendra Modi government had unveiled a new defence acquisition procedure under which the three services were permitted to lease military equipment, hardware and platforms like helicopters, simulators and transport planes and UAVs, among others.
