Indian Air Force MQ-9B SkyGuardian Ordered

India and the United States signed a government-to-government contract on 15 October 2024 for 31 armed MQ-9B high-altitude long-endurance drones, worth about $3.3 billion. The package covers 15 SeaGuardians for the Navy and eight SkyGuardians each for the Army and the Air Force, with Hellfire missiles, GBU-39B glide bombs, sensor suites and mobile ground control stations, plus a depot-level maintenance facility in India. A defence ministry official told the Times of India that deliveries would begin in about four years and be completed in six. The deal was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security on 9 October.