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The Ministry of Defence has signed a ₹1,943-crore contract with US-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) to lease two MQ-9B Sea Guardian High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE) remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) to the Indian Navy for 30 months.
The contract was signed on August 17 in New Delhi in the presence of A. Anbarasu, Additional Secretary and Director General (Acquisition), Department of Defence, at Kartavya Bhawan-2.
The leasing of the two Sea Guardians is expected to give the Navy a significant boost in its ability to maintain persistent surveillance over the vast Indian Ocean Region, where tracking ships, submarines and other maritime activity remains a growing operational priority.
Equipped with advanced sensors, surveillance systems and sophisticated mission payloads, the MQ-9B Sea Guardians can remain airborne for extended periods and cover large stretches of the maritime domain. Their deployment will strengthen the Navy's Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), providing commanders with a longer-range and more persistent picture of activity at sea.
The move comes as India seeks to strengthen its surveillance architecture across the Indian Ocean, particularly amid growing Chinese naval activity and the increasing presence of extra-regional forces in the region.
For the Indian Navy, the two leased aircraft will provide an immediate operational capability while also complementing its existing fleet of maritime patrol aircraft, helicopters, warships and space-based surveillance assets.
The Sea Guardian's long endurance and advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities are particularly suited to monitoring the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean, where conventional platforms can face limitations in maintaining continuous coverage.
The 30-month lease also allows the Navy to employ the systems operationally while building greater experience in the use of long-endurance unmanned platforms for maritime missions.
The contract with GA-ASI is therefore not merely an acquisition of two aircraft but part of India's broader effort to build a more persistent, networked and technology-driven maritime surveillance capability.
