Centre trashes media reports on drone deal

New Delhi: Refuting the ‘speculative reports’ with regard to the price and other terms of purchase of the 31 MQ-9B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) from the US, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Sunday said the estimated cost provided by the US Government is USD 3.072 billion, however, the price and terms of the purchase are ‘yet to be finalised’.

The ministry said the price of these drones will be decided upon only after a comparison of the ‘best price’ offered to other countries. The Defense Ministry will compare the acquisition cost with the best price offered by General Atomics (GA) to other countries. The procurement is in progress and would be completed as per the laid down procedure.

Reacting to some speculative reports that had emerged in the social media referring to the price and other terms of purchase, the Defense Ministry in a statement said, "These are uncalled for, have ulterior motives and are aimed at derailing the due acquisition process."

"The price and other terms of the purchase are yet to be finalised and subject to negotiations. In this regard, all are requested not to spread fake news or misinformation, which can have a serious impact on the morale of the Armed Forces and adversely impact the acquisition process," it added.

A Letter of Request (LOR) would be sent to the US government where Tri-services requirements, details of equipment and terms of the procurement would be included. Based on the LOR, the US government and MoD will finalise the Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA, where details of equipment and terms of the procurement would be negotiated and finalised in accordance with the FMS program and the price and terms offered by the US government and GA to other countries.

The Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the acquisition of 31 MQ-9B long endurance drones was accorded to the procurement by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), on June 15. These include 16 Sky Guardian and 15 Sea Guardians. “The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), on June 15, 2023, accorded the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for acquisition of 31 MQ-9B (16 Sky Guardian and 15 Sea Guardian) High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) for Tri-Services from the USA through Foreign Military Sale (FMS) route. The AoN included the number of UAVs to be procured along with associated equipment,” the ministry said.