DRDO drone crashes during trial flight

New Delhi: The Defence Research and Development Organisation's (DRDO) medium altitude long endurance class UAV TAPAS crashed on Sunday morning during experimental trials at ATR Challakere, Karnataka.

"TAPAS UAV was undergoing an experimental flight trial this morning from ATR Challakere, Karnataka. During the flight, a technical snag was encountered, resulting in the UAV crashing in a nearby farmland," stated DRDO. They are currently investigating the technical reasons behind the incident and assured that there was no collateral damage.

As news of the crash spread, local villagers hurried to the crash site to witness the UAV. According to a report from a news agency, visuals revealed the damaged UAV and its equipment scattered across the field.

TAPAS-BH, currently under development, represents DRDO's solution to the armed forces' ISTAR (intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance) requirements. TAPAS-BH stands for Tactical Aerial Platform for Advanced Surveillance - Beyond Horizon.

This UAV, often referred to as the Indian counterpart to the US' Predator drones, boasts the capability to operate at altitudes of up to 28,000 feet, with an impressive endurance of over 18 hours.