During the limited conflict between India and Pakistan from May 7 to 10, India used numerous types of drones and missiles to hit targets in Pakistan. Of these, the Pakistani military shot down at least 77 drones. These drones were launched in various waves throughout the three days of the conflict, flying to cities all along the India-Pakistan border and, in some instances, even farther inside Pakistan. Some were even shot down after the two sides agreed to a ceasefire.
Such large-scale employment of drones along with multiple types of cruise missiles by India is a shift in their strategy from the previous standoff in 2019, in which they used guided bombs.
The Indian military used various types of drones which varied in roles and how they were employed. One of the first types to be brought down by Pakistan and identified was the Warmate loitering munition, which was produced by WB Electronics India a local branch of the Polish defence contractor WB Group, India was stated to have received around 100 of these. The wreckage of these was visually confirmed in various areas along the Working Boundary in Sialkot and Narowal districts, with around nine landing in these two districts. Two more were also recovered, one from Lahore which was found largely intact, and one in Barnala, Azad Kashmir. According to their manufacturer, they have a range of 30 km, an operational speed of 80 km/h, and can be equipped with either high-explosive or thermobaric warheads. These drones were used mainly on the first night and day of the conflict.
Image 1: WB Electronics Warmate loitering munition.
Early on the night of May 7, a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) hexa or octa-copter drone was shot down along the Line of Control (LOC), while another small quad-copter was brought down intact by Electronic Warfare (EW) undertaken by the Pakistan Army in the Zafarwal sector. Air defence in the Bhimber area shot down another VTOL loitering munition. Open-source analysts identified it as the Nagastra-1 loitering munition, produced by Solar Group based in Nagpur; 480 of these were procured by the Indian Army. Unlike the Warmate loitering munition, this can be recovered; it slows down and then deploys a parachute for that purpose. It has a range of 15 to 30 km, depending on whether it is flying autonomously or by an operator, a flight time of 60 minutes, and an overall weight of 30 kg. Another munition found in the Narowal area was identified as the UAV-launched Precision Guided Missile (ULPGM). This was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and is produced by Adani Defence. It is said to have a 2 kg warhead, an overall weight between 5 to 8.5 kg, and a range of 2 to 6 km. Two target drones were also launched by the Indian military which crashed into central Pakistan, these were the Banshee Jet 40 system. These are produced in India by Anadrone Systems in cooperation with QinetiQ Target Systems, a UK-based defence contractor. The wreckage of an Elbit Sky Striker was also recovered from the Sialkot area, it was most probably shot down by air defence. These drones are produced in India through a joint venture between the Israeli defence contractor Elbit and India’s Alpha Design (part of the Adani group). They have a range of 100 km and carry a warhead between 5 and 10 kg.
Image 2: Nagastra-1 which is produced by Solar Group.
Image 3: ULPGM designed by DRDO and produced by Adani Defence.
Image 4: Banshee Jet 40 target drone made by Anadrone Systems in India.
Image 5: Eblit’s Sky Stryker Loitering Munition.
During the three-day conflict, the IAI Harop was the most frequently used drone by the Indian military. The Pakistani military claimed to have shot down a total of 77 of these drones through various means. It is made by the Israeli Aerospace Industries and was initially ordered by the Indian military in 2010. These drones have an endurance of nine hours and can proceed to a predesignated area, look for targets, and after identifying them attack them. There is also a controller in the loop that can abort any attack if necessary. The Harop is different from other drones used as it can be employed for the specialised role of destroying or suppressing enemy air defences, as it can home in on the radiation signatures given off by radars. It also has a much larger warhead compared to the other types mentioned, carrying some 23 kg of explosives which enables it to hit a wider range of targets, including those harder for other drones to damage.
Image 6: IAI’s Harop loitering munition.
Such large-scale employment of drones along with multiple types of cruise missiles (SCALP and BrahMos) by India is a shift in their strategy from the previous standoff in 2019, in which they used guided bombs to attack what they called a terrorist camp in Balakot. The use of Harops in such large numbers points to Indian efforts to disrupt if not destroy Pakistan’s air defences. These drones have been used to this effect in other conflicts, notably between Azerbaijan and Armenia where the former successfully destroyed the air defence systems of the latter to great effect. Other loitering munitions, like the Warmates, were used to hit military targets in areas along the LOC and the Working Boundary. However, Harops were used all along the border, flying over numerous cities including Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, where they were subsequently brought down by air defences.
Image 7: Brahmos Missiles jointly produced by India and Russia.
Image 8: SCALP cruise missile.
The Harops were employed after the initial Indian attack in the early hours of May 7, which saw five Indian jets being shot down by the Pakistani military in retaliation. This shift moved the focus of the discussion in India and Pakistan from the downed jets to Indian drones over Pakistani cities. This played in the favour of the Indian military, particularly the Air Force. While most of these drones were brought down and the rest fell into open areas away from the population, there were some civilian injuries and casualties as well as four soldiers getting injured. However, these drones did not hit anything of significance but effectively shifted the narrative away from the loss of five Indian aircraft. All in all, the conflict has brought with it a new means of fighting into the mainstream in the Indian Sub-Continent, where waves of drones and loitering munitions are launched at the opposing side hoping to overwhelm their air defences to get through to their targets. Any future skirmish or conflict between India and Pakistan will involve substantial use of drones by both sides leading to the need to develop strategies and adopt equipment like Anti-Drone Systems and better short-range air defences to counter them.
