India has requested for six MQ-9 drones from the US at the cost of $600 million.

[IblinI]

Currently China, US have shifted focus from MALE ucav towards stealthy recon/strike, AI swarm, unmanned jets, HALE etc..

 

[Marker]

One of the important lesson learnt from ongoing conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia is effective use of armed and surveillance drones and decisive outcomes of employment of loitering munition.

Pakistan should not only acquire and develop drone and loitering munition technologies, but also acquire and develop its counter technologies.
https://thegeopolitics.com/the-increasing-significance-of-anti-drone-technology-for-pakistan/

 

[Yasser76]

India is not really buying drones. They are trying to buy US protection. US made it clear sign our defence agreements and even if money is short buy our products. Now Indians are becoming like Arabs, buying US goodwill. In Arabs case they cannot face Iran alone and on Indians case they cannot face China (or China/Pak combined) alone. No other reason they are only buying small quantities of very expensive kit.

15 Chinooks and 22 Apaches will not modernise a Indian Military which has 600 plus helicopters that need replacing.

6 Reapers will mean most soldiers in the 1 million man army will never get the benefits of then in terms of close air support.

 

[LeGenD]

It should still be technically enough to hit Indian posts which otherwise would be out of artillery range should India decide to use MQ 9 against Pakistan.
Moreover no matter how advanced MQ9 is or as you said battle proven, still it was used against forces with no air force, mostly against talibans in Afghanistan or Iraq. The effectiveness will be questionable against a proper air force such as PAF or PLAAF.

Yes, it would be.

Sophisticated UAVs are very much capable of eroding surface defenses, but this principle extend both ways. UAVs can be made to take off from numerous sectors in a short span, strike at intended targets and return. Now imagine mixing MQ-9 Reapers with numerous low cost UAVs during the course of military operations. It becomes really expensive to go after so many UAVs with manned fighter jets.

My point is that UAVs provide sufficient window to strike at surface defenses. Just look at Azerbaijan-Armenia clashes - both have an Air Force.

UAVs are not at the stage of challenging manned fighter jets out in the open yet but MQ-9 Reaper is a start towards this end with sufficient technical capability to defeat other UAVs midair (much more capable designs will emerge in the future nevertheless). The responsibility of challenging an Air Force will fall on the shoulder of another Air Force for now.

UAVs represent a revolution and should not be underestimated.

 

[thinkingcap81]

India is not really buying drones. They are trying to buy US protection. US made it clear sign our defence agreements and even if money is short buy our products. Now Indians are becoming like Arabs, buying US goodwill. In Arabs case they cannot face Iran alone and on Indians case they cannot face China (or China/Pak combined) alone. No other reason they are only buying small quantities of very expensive kit.

15 Chinooks and 22 Apaches will not modernise a Indian Military which has 600 plus helicopters that need replacing.

6 Reapers will mean most soldiers in the 1 million man army will never get the benefits of then in terms of close air support.

We were always buying things from outside - lower end stuff for mass usage and higher end stuff for various applications and reasons. We also made some of the low-end stuff through different means - self design or by getting know-how.

Now we are in a position to transition to more advanced equipments, but we cannot do away with very sophisticated equipments. At the same time, what you said also applies, but to limit it to US protection and nothing more misses the point. We need partnerships with countries who are much more technologically advanced - case in point - do we need Israel's protection?

India cannot be compared to Arab countries. Our technological capabilities are way higher than them. Further, getting our hands on sophisticated equipment is both necessary (diplomatic and operational POV) and also gives us first-hand knowledge and usage of such equipment. How much we can exploit them is upto us.

 

[Yasser76]

We were always buying things from outside - lower end stuff for mass usage and higher end stuff for various applications and reasons. We also made some of the low-end stuff through different means - self design or by getting know-how.

Now we are in a position to transition to more advanced equipments, but we cannot do away with very sophisticated equipments. At the same time, what you said also applies, but to limit it to US protection and nothing more misses the point. We need partnerships with countries who are much more technologically advanced - case in point - do we need Israel's protection?

India cannot be compared to Arab countries. Our technological capabilities are way higher than them. Further, getting our hands on sophisticated equipment is both necessary (diplomatic and operational POV) and also gives us first-hand knowledge and usage of such equipment. How much we can exploit them is upto us.

I agree India's technlogical capabilities are good, certainly higher than the Arab world, but any Indian Officer will be the first to admit that this has not translated into advanced home grown technical abilities. In drones for instance, US, Israel, China, Turkey and Italy seem way ahead.

As we know we are living with a very transactional US administration and there has been massive pressure on India to purchase US weapons as quid pro quo. MRCA comp did not go US way so it looks like India is buying piecemeal items to keep US happy and not a direct result as armed forces requirements.

Case in point with these 6 Reapers. They are being divided between all three Indian services, did suddenly Army, Navy and Air Force all require same drone!?

Likewise 22 Apaches to Air Force, then another 6 to Army to keep the interservice rivalry at bay and again keep US happy. How does 6 Apaches effect the doctrine and capability of a 1 million man army with 4,000 tanks!?

 

[Osiris]

If tittle is true, at 5 times to the cost of fly away condition, please explain how.

It is easier to show than explain.

On 27 June 2013, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of a possible Foreign Military Sale to France for 16 unarmed MQ-9s, associated equipment, ground control hardware, and support, worth up to $1.5 billion total

France concludes deal for 16 Reapers

France has concluded a deal with the Pentagon to purchase 16 General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aircraft and eight ground control...

www.flightglobal.com

 

[CIA Mole]

Poland inks $4.6 billion contract for F-35 fighter jets

Poles expect a technological leap as a result of the purchase, the country's defense minister said.

www.defensenews.com

Poland gets 32 lightning II’s for $4.6 or roughly $150 mil each.

India paid 7.2 bil for 36 rafale.


India is a cuck nation

 

[IblinI]

 

[Mace]

India is not really buying drones. They are trying to buy US protection. US made it clear sign our defence agreements and even if money is short buy our products. Now Indians are becoming like Arabs, buying US goodwill. In Arabs case they cannot face Iran alone and on Indians case they cannot face China (or China/Pak combined) alone. No other reason they are only buying small quantities of very expensive kit.

15 Chinooks and 22 Apaches will not modernise a Indian Military which has 600 plus helicopters that need replacing.

6 Reapers will mean most soldiers in the 1 million man army will never get the benefits of then in terms of close air support.

India is not buying US protection, but is building an alliance with US and interoperability. QUAD is here to stay and most likely will expand.

India is using chinooks and Apaches effectively right now in Ladakh along with the Hercules and C17s. Their contribution to india’s military posture at Ladakh should not be underestimated.

The number of reapers will only grow.

Let’s face it, China’s grandstanding at Ladakh is virtually quickening military modernisation and infra build at an alarming pace. I honestly wish PLA clowns keep up their stupidity at Ladakh for at least another 6 months.

 

[Yasser76]

India is not buying US protection, but is building an alliance with US and interoperability. QUAD is here to stay and most likely will expand.

India is using chinooks and Apaches effectively right now in Ladakh along with the Hercules and C17s. Their contribution to india’s military posture at Ladakh should not be underestimated.

The number of reapers will only grow.

Let’s face it, China’s grandstanding at Ladakh is virtually quickening military modernisation and infra build at an alarming pace. I honestly wish PLA clowns keep up their stupidity at Ladakh for at least another 6 months.

"India is not buying US protection, but is building an alliance with US and interoperability" Literally word for word what the Saudis say.

 

[Mace]

"India is not buying US protection, but is building an alliance with US and interoperability" Literally word for word what the Saudis say.

Wrong analogy. India was never a client state like Pakistan or Saudi.

 

[Yasser76]

Wrong analogy. India was never a client state like Pakistan or Saudi.

"Was" being the operative answer there. Right now, for the first time in history, if US sanctioned Pakistan and India it would hurt India just as much as Pakistan. Pakistan - F-16/P-3C, India = C-17, P-8, Apache, Chinook

 

[graphican]

So the previous news of India getting 30 Drones for 3 Billion was correct. 6 for 600 million is the same deal - but what a ripper! One drone for the price of 3 JF-17s.

 

[Pangu]

How much of that $ goes into kickbacks?