Did The Armed Forces Shelve 'Project Cheetah' — A Plan To Arm Existing Israeli Heron Drones In Its Inventory?

All three services of the armed forces, viz, the Indian Army, Navy, and the Air Force, operate Israeli-origin Heron medium altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) roles.

The exact number of these drones in operation is not precisely known, but it is estimated that they are in double digits.

Recognising the ability of armed drones to cheaply destroy enemy targets without putting human operators in danger, the three services made plans to upgrade these Heron drones with laser-guided missiles and bombs, and satellite-based communication systems (SATCOM).

Using the SATCOM system, these drones could be operated from anywhere in the world compared to the 200-250 kilometres range of the earlier, line-of-sight (LOS) operated versions.

All these upgrades were to be done under Project Cheetah. This upgrade was expected to cost nearly Rs 5,000 crore.

However, according to a recent report by The Print, the armed forces have decided to shelve this plan and will only upgrade satellite-based control system capabilities.

"The plan to arm the Herons as part of the upgrade has been shelved,” the report said, quoting a source.

This comes after two developments — first, the Department of Military Affairs (DMA) led by Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Lt Gen Anil Chauhan started a study last month to identify the total number of UAVs to be bought for the three services.

The study was completed recently, recommending the purchase of 155 MALE drones and 31 MQ-9B high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) drones for the three services.

And second, media reports of the three services buying more Israeli UAVs using their emergency procurement powers granted by the central government.

According to these reports, the army and navy bought two Hermes 900 MALE UAVs, each, while the air force bought two Heron Mk2 UAVs.

This followed the acquisition of four more Heron Mk2 UAVs by the army, the deal for which was signed in 2021. Two of these Heron Mk2 drones were deployed in Ladakh, in the northern sector covering both China and Pakistan, while the remaining two are in the eastern sector, opposite China.

These new Heron Mk2 drones will also be armed, with the ability to fire precision-guided munitions (PGM) like laser-guided anti-tank missiles and bombs.

Moreover, the armed forces will get 31 MQ-9B Guardian armed drones from the United States, which was agreed upon when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the US in June 2023.

The navy will get 15 MQ-9B, while the rest 16 will be shared equally between the army and air force (eight each).

These MQ-9B with loitering munitions and swarm drones will fill the void created after the closing of Project Cheetah. The report also states that spending too much on arming drones doesn't make sense, as "the airspace that India has to fight in is heavily contested, unlike when an American just flies into countries without any air defence to strike at targets."

Furthermore, these Hermes 900 drones being bought under emergency procurement will be manufactured in India by Adani Group's facility in Hyderabad in collaboration with Elbit Systems.

Hermes 900 and Heron drones will be inducted in army aviation corps, ensuring all flying assets of the army remain as a single cohesive unit.

Also Read: After Israeli Heron Long-Range Drones, Armed Forces Order Hermes Medium Altitude Long-Endurance UAV; Deliveries Next Year