Defence
Made-In-India Tapas UAV Crashes During Trials In Karnataka
Tapas-BH (DRDO/Twitter)
In an unfortunate incident, the indigenous Tapas medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) crashed today (20th August) near a village in Karnataka.
The Tapas UAV is being developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a defense research and development organization (DRDO) lab for the Indian Armed Forces.
The Tapas UAV developed by ADE crashed near Chitradurga in Vaddikere village, located in the Hiriyur taluk of Karnataka.
An inquiry has been ordered by the DRDO to ascertain the causes of the crash.
The crashed UAV had the prototype serial number 017A-14 and was one of the six prototypes of the UAV under testing.
Earlier, in September 2019, another prototype of the UAV crashed in Chitradurga, as well.
The UAV is capable of flying for more than 18 hours at an altitude of 28,000 feet.
It is also capable of carrying various electronic intelligence (ELINT), communication intelligence (COMINT), and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) payloads, allowing the UAV to monitor enemy movements for an extended period.
The Indian armed forces have shown willingness to initially acquire 76 production variants of Tapas. The Indian Army will operate 60, the IAF will operate 12, and the Indian Navy will operate 4.
Just a month ago, on June 27th, Tapas achieved a significant milestone by completing its 200th flight, showcasing its capabilities to a tri-services team for the first time.
The flight took off from ADE's Advanced Testing Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, situated in Karnataka.
The DRDO has announced after the flight that the UAV is now ready for user evaluation trials. According to a report by the news agency Reuters, the user trials were scheduled to begin in the month of August.
These trials will allow the Indian Armed Forces to thoroughly assess its capabilities in real-world scenarios.
The successful 200th flight followed yet another achievement of the UAV, where it showcased its ability to transfer its command and control from a land-based ground control station (GCS) to a distant GCS located 148 kilometers away at the Karwar naval base, onboard an Indian Navy ship INS Subhadra.
Support Swarajya's 50 Ground Reports Project & Sponsor A Story
Every general election Swarajya does a 50 ground reports project.
Aimed only at serious readers and those who appreciate the nuances of political undercurrents, the project provides a sense of India's electoral landscape. As you know, these reports are produced after considerable investment of travel, time and effort on the ground.
This time too we've kicked off the project in style and have covered over 30 constituencies already. If you're someone who appreciates such work and have enjoyed our coverage please consider sponsoring a ground report for just Rs 2999 to Rs 19,999 - it goes a long way in helping us produce more quality reportage.
You can also back this project by becoming a subscriber for as little as Rs 999 - so do click on this links and choose a plan that suits you and back us.
Click below to contribute.
Latest
