An Indian Navy Drishti-10 Starliner drone, built by Adani Defence and Aerospace, crashed off the Porbandar coast in Gujarat on Wednesday during a training sortie, the Navy said.
“The Indian Navy confirms the crash of an uncrewed aerial vehicle, Drishti-10, off Porbandar airfield during a training sortie this afternoon,” it said in a statement. No injuries or loss of life were reported. The Navy added that the cause of the incident is under investigation.
A Drishti-10 Starliner drone also crashed off Porbandar in January 2025. The Navy and the Army had earlier ordered two such medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) drones each, invoking emergency financial powers to boost their intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.
Each system costs around ₹145 crore.
Adani Defence and Aerospace built the Drishti-10 Starliner at its Hyderabad facility, incorporating technology transferred from Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems. The drone is the first major defence platform Adani has delivered to the Indian military and is a variant of Elbit Systems’ Hermes 900 Starliner drone.
The all-weather Drishti-10 Starliner is 70% indigenous, has an endurance of 36 hours and can carry a payload of 450 kg. The drone, which has three hardpoints, can be weaponised if necessary.