Munitions India and Drogo Aerospace Partner on Long-Range Indigenous Loitering Munition

India’s indigenous unmanned-strike ecosystem is set for another expansion with defence PSU Munitions India Limited (MIL) joining hands with Hyderabad-based Drogo Aerospace Private Limited to develop UAVs and loitering-munition systems for future defence requirements.

The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Pune on September 4, 2026, bringing together Drogo Aerospace’s unmanned-aircraft engineering capabilities and MIL’s experience in ammunition, explosives and warhead technology. The agreement was signed by Yashwanth Bonthu, Founder and CEO of Drogo Aerospace, and Kumar Vaibhav Gaur, Executive Director of Munitions India.

Under the collaboration, Drogo Aerospace will lead the design, development and manufacture of UAV platforms and associated payload hardware. Munitions India will contribute expertise in munition design, explosive systems, payload filling, fuzing and modular warhead development. The companies will subsequently work together on integrating the munition with the aircraft, conducting safety assessments, undertaking field and range trials and completing the required quality-certification process.

A major focus of the partnership is Drogo Aerospace’s indigenous Delta Wing Kamikaze, a long-range one-way attack UAV or loitering-munition platform. Drogo says the aircraft was recently successfully tested in Hyderabad, giving the programme a platform from which to move toward more extensive integration and validation work.

The aircraft uses a delta-wing configuration suited to a compact, aerodynamically efficient unmanned strike platform. According to Drogo Aerospace, the system is being designed around a mission range of up to 1,000 kilometres while carrying a warhead in the approximately 20–30 kg class. These figures presently represent the company’s intended design capability rather than independently demonstrated operational performance.

If achieved in a production-ready weapon, such a combination of range and payload would place the Delta Wing Kamikaze in a substantially heavier and longer-range category than many small tactical loitering munitions. A system of this class could potentially give the armed forces an indigenous option for engaging designated targets well beyond the immediate tactical battlefield while keeping a crewed aircraft outside the target area.

The involvement of Munitions India is particularly significant because turning an unmanned aircraft into a reliable military weapon requires considerably more than integrating an explosive payload. Warhead design, fuzing, explosive safety, structural integration and qualification must all be engineered as part of the complete weapon system.

Munitions India was formed in 2021 following the restructuring of the former Ordnance Factory Board and today manufactures ammunition, explosives, rockets and bombs for India’s armed forces and other customers. The Ministry of Defence has described MIL as a major Indian producer of ammunition and explosives, giving Drogo access to an established defence-industrial partner as its platform moves through the weapon-integration phase.

For Drogo Aerospace, the agreement provides a pathway from UAV development toward a fully integrated loitering-munition system. The next important milestones will therefore be the integration of the warhead and fuze, safety qualification, controlled range trials and validation of the aircraft’s claimed mission envelope.

The programme also reflects a wider change taking place in India’s unmanned-warfare industry. Private companies are increasingly developing airframes, autonomy and control systems while established defence manufacturers provide explosives, warheads and production infrastructure. By combining those capabilities within India, the Drogo–Munitions India partnership could help create another domestically developed long-range unmanned strike system while reducing dependence on imported loitering-munition technologies.