India’s Military Demonstrated Offensive Drone Swarm Capabilities

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In a first demonstration, India’s Army has showcased offensive 75-drone swarm operations during the country’s Army Day parade. The swarm simulated taking down a range of targets, demonstrating kamikaze attacks, first-aid delivery and parachute payload delivery exercises.

The demonstration was defined as a milestone in “disruption in warfare” by A. Bharat Bhushan Babu, the principal spokesperson of the ministry of defense. The drone swarm could “enter 50 km inside enemy territory and carry out independent military tasks and destroy targets”. Each drone is autonomous and independent to carry out missions by leveraging AI power.

Economic Times reported the Indian Army is working with NewSpace Research and Technologies, a start-up, to develop swarm drones. The Army and NewSpace plan to fly up to 1,000 rotary drones at once. These drones can destroy targets ranging from tanks and terror camps to fuel dumps.

Drones capable of destroying targets — using either missiles or by going Kamikaze (detonating themselves) — have existed for at least two decades. But where drone swarms differ is their capability to ‘saturate’ radars and air defenses, complicating an enemy’s capability to respond. Moreover, the relatively small size of the drones and their simple construction make them cheaper to build and customize, according to theweek.in.