India's Tapas UAV Achieves New Milestone: Command And Control Transfer From Ground Station To Warship At Sea Tested

In a remarkable feat, the Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy have successfully demonstrated the transfer of command and control capabilities of the Tapas Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) from a distant ground station to the onboard INS Subhadra, a warship located 148 kilometers away from the Karwar naval base.

The demonstration took place on 16 June 2023.

Operating seamlessly at an altitude of 20,000 feet above sea level, the Tapas UAV executed its flight for a duration of 3 hours and 30 minutes, with the INS Subhadra effectively assuming control of the UAV's operations for 40 minutes during the demonstration.

The Tapas UAV, taking off at 07:35 hours from the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Chitradurga, covered a distance of 285 kilometers to reach the Karwar naval base.

To facilitate the seamless control of the UAV, one Ground Control Station and two Ship Data Terminals were installed aboard the INS Subhadra, the DRDO noted in a statement.

Following the successful trial, the Tapas UAV safely landed back at the ATR.

According to reports, DRDO's TAPAS is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle, capable of operating at altitudes up to 28,000 feet with an endurance of over 18 hours.

The first public flight of the TAPAS surveillance drone took place at Aero India 2023 in Bengaluru earlier this year.

Designed as a solution to the tri-services Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, Tracking & Reconnaissance (ISTAR) requirements, this platform can operate effectively in both day and night conditions.

The UAV can be controlled remotely or operate autonomously, executing pre-programmed flight plans with precision and flexibility.

Equipped with advanced sensors and cameras, TAPAS can capture high-resolution images and videos. The collected data is transmitted to a ground control station, where it undergoes analysis.

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