India-US Deal For Buying 31 Predator Drones To Be Signed Soon: Navy Chief

Admiral R. Hari Kumar, the head of the Indian Navy, said on Sunday that the Defense Acquisition Council has approved the deal to buy 31 Predator drones from the US. The deal is likely to be signed in the next few months.

“We’re the lead servers in charge of it.” The Defense Acquisition Council gave their approval to the letter of request, which was then sent to the US government. They gave us a draft of a letter of availability. The last one is now coming. Before it can come, it has to be brought to the attention of a US congressional group, he said.

The Navy chief stated, “We hope that it will be taken forward and we hope to sign the contract maybe in a few months ahead.”

He said there is a wait time between making it and getting it to you. That means the first plane might not come for another 36 months.

“And we hope that it will move forward. We hope to sign the contract sometime in the next few months.” After that, there is a wait time for making it and sending it to you. “That means the first plane might not come for another 36 months,” he said.

The United States and India are in talks to sign a deal that would buy 31 Predator drones. The Indian Navy would use 15 of them, and the Indian Army and Air Force would each use 8.

The deal is likely to be worth around USD 4 billion and include weapons and other tools needed for activities.

Admiral Kumar says again that protecting national interests in the maritime area is the most important thing. This shows how dedicated the Navy is to keeping the seas safe.

The ‘MILAN 24, he said, “a new era of maritime cooperation, where nations unite to navigate the complexities of the maritime domain, ensuring that the oceans remain safe, secure, and free–a testament to the enduring spirit of collaboration in the Indo-Pacific region.”

Eastern Naval Command tweeted on X that they were happy to see Corvette 20 of the Vietnam People’s Navy and USS Halsey (DDG-97) of the US Navy.

“Naval vessels from Vietnam and the United States have arrived in Visakhapatnam for the MILAN 2024 maritime exercise,” the post on X said.

Also, over 50 countries will take part in the 12th MILAN drill, which will take place in Visakhapatnam from February 19th to 27th.