Indian Navy's US-Leased MQ-9B Sea Guardian Drone Ditched Into Bay of Bengal After Technical Failure

A high-altitude-long-endurance MQ-9B Sea Guardian drone, leased by the Indian Navy from the United States, encountered a technical failure on Wednesday (18 September), and was ditched into the Bay of Bengal off Chennai.

The drone was operating from naval air station INS Rajali in Arakkonam near Chennai, the Indian Navy said.

"A High Altitude Long Endurance Remotely Piloted Aircraft (HALE RPA) leased by the Indian Navy operating from INS Rajali, Arakkonam (near Chennai) encountered a technical failure at about 1400 hrs whilst on a routine surveillance mission which could not be reset in flight," the Navy said in a statement.

"The aircraft was navigated to a safe area over sea and carried out a controlled ditching at sea off Chennai. A detailed report has been sought from the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)," it added.

The Indian Navy had leased two MQ-9B Sea Guardian drones from General Atomics, a US-based defence company, in 2020 for surveillance missions in the Indian Ocean region.

Although the lease was originally set for one year, it has since been extended for continued use.

General Atomics has been operating and carrying out maintenance of the drones as per the lease agreement.

The company is expected to replace the lost drone with another one as mandated under the pact.

The incident comes as India is planning to procure 31 MQ-9B Predator drones at an estimated cost of $3 billion. The proposed acquisition is aimed at bolstering the surveillance capabilities of Indian military, particularly along its border with China.

In June 2023, the Defence Ministry gave the green light for the purchase of armed MQ-9B Predator drones from the United States through a government-to-government agreement.

The MQ-9B is a variant of the MQ-9 "Reaper", which was used to carry out the modified Hellfire missile strike that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul in July 2022.

Also Read: US Federal Reserve Lowers Rates By 50 Basis Points After Four-Year Hiatus — All You Need To Know