Context:
India clears first hurdle in purchase of 31 US MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones from US.
Drones:
- Pilotless flying machine, using aerodynamics for lift, can operate autonomously or remotely, and may carry lethal or nonlethal cargo
MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones:
- An unmanned aerial vehicle capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations
- Remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS)
- Range: 1,850 km
- Developed by – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems primarily for the United States Air Force
- Delivers – persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) around the globe
- Designed to – fly over the horizon via satellite for up to 40+ hours in all types of weather
- Safely integrate into civil airspace, enabling joint forces and civil authorities to deliver real-time situational awareness anywhere in the world—day or night.
- Enables real-time search and patrol above and below
- Enables armed forces and governments to easily integrate sovereign payloads and mission systems for their own uniquely tailored solutions.
Drone Technology:
- Components – Unmanned aircraft (UA), Control system (ground control station – GCS), Control link (specialized datalink), Other related support equipment.
- Applications – Mapping & Surveying , Agriculture, Emergency Response (search and rescue, marine rescue, fire fighting), Disaster (zone mapping, disaster relief etc), Mining and Monitoring Poachers, Meteorology, Aviation, Payload carrying etc.
- Drones in defence –
- Purposes – Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Search and Rescue, Maritime Surveillance, Combat Drones, Offensive (heterogeneous SWARM drones), Counter-Terrorism Operations etc.
- India’s Counter-Drone System –
- Indrajaal (India’s inaugural autonomous drone-defense dome)
- Procurement of combat-capable Heron drones from Israel
- Acquisition of MQ-9B Armed Drones from the US
Read more about: Iron Dome, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Source: The Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Consider the following activities:
1. Spraying pesticides on a crop field.
2. Inspecting the craters of active volcanoes.
3. Collecting breath samples from spouting whales for DNA analysis.
At the present level of technology, which of the above activities can be successfully carried out by using drones?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2022 Prelims]
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (d)
