Drogo Aerospace and Munitions India Ltd. Sign MoU to Develop Indigenous UAVs

India's push for defence self-reliance just got a new boost. Munitions India Limited, a government-owned defence manufacturer, has partnered with Drogo Aerospace in Pune on 4 September 2026 to jointly build indigenous drones and loitering munitions, combining warhead expertise with UAV engineering under one roof.

Munitions India-Drogo Aerospace MoU Key Points

1. The MoU was signed in Pune, with Yashwanth Bonthu (Founder & CEO, Drogo Aerospace) and Kumar Vaibhav Gaur (Executive Director, MIL) representing the two sides.
2. Drogo Aerospace will handle UAV platform design, development, and manufacturing, as well as associated payload hardware.
3. MIL will contribute its expertise in munitions, warhead technologies, explosive systems, and fuzing.
4. Both organisations will jointly work on integration, safety evaluation, field and range trials, and quality certification.
5. The partnership centers on Drogo Aerospace's Delta Wing Kamikaze, a loitering munition already been successfully tested in Hyderabad.
6. The "Delta Wing" name refers to its triangular wing design, while "Kamikaze" denotes its one-way attack, target-and-strike function.
7. The platform is being developed for a mission range of up to 1,000 km and a warhead capacity of 20–30 kg.
8. MIL's role is expected to strengthen the platform's munition and warhead integration as it moves toward validation and mission readiness.
9. MIL was formed in 2021 following the restructuring of the erstwhile Ordnance Factory Board into seven separate defence PSUs.
10. Headquartered in Pune, MIL manufactures ammunition, explosives, rockets, and bombs for India's armed forces, foreign military customers, and civilian requirements.

About Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Loitering Munition Systems

UAVs, more commonly called drones, are aircraft that operate without a pilot on board, controlled remotely or through autonomous systems. Loitering munitions take this a step further; they're a hybrid between a drone and a missile, designed to hover over a target area, identify a target, and then strike it directly, essentially destroying themselves on impact. This "loiter and strike" capability makes them valuable for precision missions where a target's exact location may not be known in advance. For India, developing these systems indigenously reduces reliance on imports and strengthens the domestic defence manufacturing base, aligning with the government's broader Atmanirbhar Bharat push in the defence sector.