IG Drones gets orders from Indian Army for drones without Chinese components

IG Drones has got a “significant contract” from the Indian Army for supply of indigenously developed VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) and FPV (First-Person View) drones, which the company claims do not have Chinese components to address national security concerns.

IG Drones inked the deal in the second week of January and have to complete the delivery of both the types of drones to the Indian Army in a month’s time, said a senior functionary of the company without disclosing the quantity of VTOLs and FPVs, and their overall worth.

Though the IG Drones have components like cameras imported from abroad and fitted into their own manufactured drones, they are not Chinese, the senior functionary stated on the condition of anonymity. They have also sourced motors domestically, he pointed out.

Since businessline broke story in August, 2024, on private firms using Chinese components and selling them off as their own, the armed forces have cautioned the industry against white labelling of UAVs.

The IG Drones top brass confirmed that Indian Army is closely scrutinising drones during trials to check the use of Chinese parts.

“The decision to prioritise domestically developed drone technology comes at a time when the Indian Army faces mounting security threats along international borders. Recent incidents, such as the hijacking of an Indian Army drone near the Pakistan border, have underscored the urgent need for reliable, indigenously manufactured platforms free from Chinese-origin components, which could compromise national security,” IG Drones said in a statement on Tuesday.

“As of August 2024, India had 398 drone start-ups, doubling in three years, surpassing China’s 298 . However, a recent Indian Army drone hijacking near the Pakistan border has raised security concerns, highlighting the need for certified, reliable companies to provide secure solutions”.

Bodhisattwa Sanghapriya, Founder and CEO of IG Drones, said, “This contract reflects the Indian Army’s trust in our ability to deliver secure, world-class drone systems… With this, we have global aspirations to take drone ecosystem and 5-G enabled drone solutions to another level”.

The IG Drones said its VTOL Skyhawk, also called helicopter drones, operates in challenging terrains with its hybrid design, combining fixed-wing and rotor-powered flight for unmatched surveillance coverage.

With a 6 Kg MTOW (Maximum Take Off Weight) and up to 1 hour of endurance time, it offers superior versatility and operational longevity, and flexibility by enabling vertical take-off and landing in areas where runways are unavailable.

The FPV drones, on the other hand, bring a real-time, first-person perspective to tactical reconnaissance, enabling precise intelligence gathering while keeping personnel out of harm’s way.