Article Posted on : - Dec 02, 2010

Rustom a （MALE）Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) developed by DRDO.

CHENNAI (PTI): Military aviation is going through a "sea change" globally and India should step into the area of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to gain advantage, a top Defence Department official said on Thursday.

"UAVs, like robots, compete best for those jobs that are repetitive, hard and dangerous. They offer great advantage in terms of higher endurance, deeper penetration and more flexibility," Adviser to Defence Ministry VK Saraswat said.

India should take a cue from usage of drones (by US army) in Afghanistan (in its fight against the Taliban), he said.

"We have already seen the extensive usage of drones in Afghanistan and India should step into this area to gain advantage from the development of sensors, integration with the networks and evolving possible engagement scenarios through simulation," he said.

Usage of advanced materials with mirco electronics has seen new generation micro air vehicles being put to use, he said in his address at the supplementary convocation of the Satyabama University here.

Earlier, Saraswat was conferred Honorary Doctorate by the University.