India and US sign Project Agreement for Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

What is the news?

Recently, India & the US signed the Project Agreement (PA) for Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV).

What is this project about?

This is a project is signed between the Ministry of Defence & the US Department of Defence under the Defence Technology & Trade Initiative (DTTI). It is considered a major accomplishment for DTTI.

The project falls under the Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E). For this, MoU between the Ministry of Defence and the US Department of Defence was first signed in January 2006 and renewed in January 2015.

Why this move is considered significant?

The agreement is a significant step towards deepening defence technology collaboration between the two nations through the co-development of defence equipment.

What is Defence Technology & Trade Initiative (DTTI)?

DTTI mechanism was launched in 2012. It is not a treaty or a law.

Aim: It aims to include strengthening India’s defence industrial base, exploring new areas of technological development and creating opportunities for co-production and co-development of future technologies for Indian and the US military forces.

Under DTTI, Joint Working Groups on land, naval, air, and aircraft carrier technologies have been established. The Project Agreement for co-development of ALUAV has been overseen by these Joint Working Groups.

Source: This post is based on the following articles:

• “India and US sign Project Agreement for Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle” published in the PIB on 3^rd September 2021.
• “India, US sign project agreement on air-launched UAV” published in The Hindu on 4^th September 2021.