Indian Army receives 450 Nagastra 1R loitering munitions

The Indian Army has received 450 Nagastra 1R loitering munitions from Solar Defense and Aerospace Limited (SDAL), marking the largest single-batch delivery of such systems to the service. The acquisition was conducted through the Army’s emergency procurement route following rigorous technical trials.

During the evaluation process, four companies participated, but SDAL was the only manufacturer to meet all the stringent operational standards and requirements set by the Indian Army. The Nagastra 1R is designed for short-range precision strikes and features a Circular Error Probable (CEP) of two metres.

A distinguishing capability of the Nagastra 1R is its ability to abort a mission mid-flight and be safely recovered if an engagement is no longer required, offering more flexibility than conventional kamikaze drones. For surveillance, the system is equipped with a 360-degree gimbal camera and can be fitted with thermal imaging for night operations. To ensure security in contested environments, the drones utilize proprietary encryption for video feeds and telemetry links.