This mysterious drone can hit anywhere inside Pakistan and die by suicide before being traced

Buoyed on the success of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or the drones in the recent India-Pakistan clashes, the DRDO is working on a new kind of drones, that may prove to be a gamechanger. The government-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation is seriously working on developing High Altitude Long Endurance drones or the HALE UAVs. It is also considered as a step in the direction of improving indigenous defence capabilities. 

How are HALE different from MALE drones?

Earlier, the Aeronautical Development Establishment under the DRDO planned to develop Medium Altitude Long Endurance drones or the MALE UAVs. The MALE drones are the most suitable unmanned aerial vehicles for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. However, the ADE project proved to be a non-starter as it failed to meet the technical requirements and specifications of the armed forces. It was a massive setback for the DRDO, which changed the strategy.  

DRDO Project 

Meanwhile, the India-Pakistan tension escalated in the wake of the Pahalgam terrorist attack. As India successfully lunched loitering drones and got good results in Operation Sindoor, it wants to focus on the drones that can be sent deep inside the enemy territory and hit the targets. The DRDO now wants to develop HALE UAVs because it can be used for sending loitering drones to attack the target as well as well as on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. 

HAL project on jet-propelled HALE UAVs

Meanwhile, the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has offered to develop the jet-propelled HALE UAVs. These can send swarms of drones with increased speed, higher altitude and enhanced payload that can hit the target deeper inside the enemy territory due to longer endurance. This unmanned aerial vehicle can be a game-changer. If reports are to be believed, the armed forces are keen in getting this kind of drones as for its multiple role and killing capabilities. 

The Indian armed forces used the loitering munitions during Operation Sindoor to strike at terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7, 2025. Known as Kamikaze or suicide drones, the loitering drones were developed by a Bengaluru-based private company in collaboration with an Israel-based military technology company.