E-Paper
India signs project agreement with US for air-launched aerial vehicles
The ALUAV project agreement falls under the research, development, testing and evaluation (RDT&E) memorandum of agreement between India's defence ministry and the US defence department.
India has signed a project agreement with the United States for air-launched unmanned aerial vehicles (ALUAV). According to an official release on Friday, the agreement was signed on July 30 earlier this year between the ministry of defence and the US department of defence under the joint working group air systems in the defence technology and trade initiative (DTTI).
The ALUAV project agreement falls under the research, development, testing and evaluation (RDT&E) memorandum of agreement between India's defence ministry and the US defence department. It was initially signed in January 2006 and then renewed once again in January 2015, according to the release. The agreement is a significant step towards deepening defence technology collaboration between the two nations through mutual cooperation in developing defence equipment.
The defence technology and trade initiative, between India and the US, aims to bring "sustained leadership focus to promote collaborative technology exchange and create opportunities for co-production and co-development" of weapons technology of both the countries' military forces in the future. Under the DTTI, joint working groups on land, naval, air, and aircraft carrier technologies have been established to focus on mutually agreed projects in each of their respective domains. The project agreement in this regard is being overseen by the joint working group on air systems and is being considered a "major accomplishment" for the initiative.
The Air Force Research Laboratory, the Indian Air Force and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) are all collaborating together for the design, development, demonstration, testing, and finally, the evaluation of systems being co-developed for an ALUAV prototype. According to the government release, the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) at DRDO and the Aerospace Systems Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), along with the Indian and US air forces are the principal organisations for the execution of the project agreement.
The agreement was signed by the co-chairs of the joint working group air systems under the DTTI, the assistant chief of air staff for plans Air Vice Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari from the IAF, and the director of the Air Force Security Assistance and cooperation directorate Brigadier General Brian R Bruckbauer from the US air force.
