India joins elite group of nations with indigenous fying-wing UAV modeled on B-21 Raider.

On December 15th, A. Bharat Bhushan Babu, the Spokesperson of the Indian Ministry of Defence, shared a tweet that was subsequently echoed and commented by NC Bipindra in EurAsian Times. This announcement celebrated India's entry into an exclusive group of nations possessing the ability to deploy flying wing technology. The milestone was achieved through the successful testing of the Autonomous Flying Wing Technology (AFWT) Demonstrator in its final configuration. This scaled-down version of an advanced unmanned combat aerial vehicle, modeled after Northrop Grumman’s B-21 Raider, marked a significant achievement for India.

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  The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully demonstrated the flight trial of Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator, an indigenous high-speed flying-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) from the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR), in Karnataka’s Chitradurga (Picture source: DRDO/Janam Online)

The Indian Ministry of Defense disclosed that the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) conducted the flight trial of the AFWT Demonstrator, a high-speed flying wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle developed locally. This testing took place at the Aeronautical Test Range in Chitradurga, located in Karnataka, southern India. The Ministry stated, "The successful flight demonstration of this autonomous stealth UAV underscores the maturity of technology readiness levels in the country. With this flight in the tailless configuration, India has joined the prestigious league of countries that have mastered flying wing technology."

The AFWT Demonstrator is one of two prototypes created by the DRDO's Aeronautical Development Establishment, based in Bangalore. It was initially flight-tested in July 2022, and the December 15th test marked the seventh iteration of trials for the tail-less configuration of the UAV. The statement emphasized India's membership in the select group of nations that have mastered flying wing technology, stating, "The maiden flight of this aircraft was demonstrated in July 2022, followed by six flight trials in various developmental configurations using two in-house manufactured prototypes."

These flight tests resulted in significant advancements in the development of a robust aerodynamic and control system, integrated real-time and hardware-in-loop simulation, and a state-of-the-art Ground Control Station. The statement further noted, "The team had optimized the avionic systems, integration, and flight operations toward the successful seventh flight in the final configuration."

The aircraft prototype features a complex arrowhead wing platform constructed with lightweight carbon prepreg composite material developed domestically. Additionally, the composite structure incorporates fiber interrogators for health monitoring, showcasing India's self-reliance in aerospace technology.

Remarkably, the high-speed AFWT Demonstrator achieved an autonomous landing without relying on ground radar, infrastructure, or pilot intervention. This achievement demonstrated a unique capability, allowing take-off and landing from any runway with surveyed coordinates. The autonomous landing was made possible through onboard sensor data fusion, using indigenous satellite-based augmentation with GPS-aided GEO-augmented navigation (GAGAN) receivers to enhance the accuracy and integrity of GPS navigation.

  India’s DRDO-developed autonomous flying wing technology demonstrator (Picture source: A. Bharat Bhushan Babu, Spokesperson of Indian MoD)