Loiter Munitions: The Kamikaze Drones Reshaping India’s Army

A drone that hovers over its target for an hour, then dives in like a missile, just changed how the Indian Army fights. It is called a loiter munition. India built one for 40% less than the imported version, and used it in real combat within a year.

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From First Batch to the Battlefield

How India’s loiter munitions went from induction to combat to a full artillery redesign

Jun 2024

Nagastra-1 Inducted

India’s first indigenous loitering munition enters Army service.

May 2025

Operation Sindoor

Harop loitering munitions strike Pakistani air defence systems.

Jul 2025

New Drone Units

Army announces Bhairav Commando Battalions built around drone warfare.

Aug 2026

Rs 1,577 Cr Contract

MoD signs Tata-NIBE deal for Loiter Munition Systems, Artillery Regiments.

The throughline: in just over two years, loiter munitions went from a first induction batch, to real combat use, to a standing part of how the Indian Army organises its artillery.

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Timeline

• June 2024: Nagastra-1, India’s first indigenous loitering munition, is formally inducted into the Army.
• 7-8 May 2025: During Operation Sindoor, India uses Harop loitering munitions to strike Pakistani air defence sites.
• 26 July 2025: The Army Chief announces new Bhairav Light Commando Battalions at Kargil Vijay Diwas.
• 14 August 2026: The Ministry of Defence signs a Rs 1,577 crore contract for Loiter Munition Systems for the Artillery Regiments.

What a Loiter Munition Actually Is Need to Know

• A loiter munition is an armed drone that hovers, or “loiters,” over an area before attacking.
• It carries its own explosive warhead. It destroys itself on impact, along with the target.
• This is why it is often called a “kamikaze drone” or a “suicide drone.”
• It differs from a surveillance drone, which only watches and carries no weapon.
• It also differs from a regular missile, since it can loiter, search, and even be recalled before striking.
• India’s own Nagastra-1 weighs just 9 kilograms and can hover over a target for 60 minutes.

India’s Indigenous Push Good to Know

• Nagastra-1 is built by Economic Explosives Limited, a Nagpur-based subsidiary of Solar Industries.
• It is developed with Z-Motion Autonomous Systems, a startup based in Bengaluru.
• The Army inducted its first batch of 120 units in June 2024, after pre-delivery clearance in May 2024.
• Two further orders followed: 480 more units in December 2024, and 450 upgraded Nagastra-1R units in June 2025.
• Nagastra-1 is roughly 75-80% indigenous in content, and about 40% cheaper than comparable imported systems.
• A second, longer-range system, Sheshnaag-150, is built by Bengaluru-based NewSpace Research and Technologies.
• Sheshnaag-150 weighs 150 kilograms and is designed for a range of up to 1,000 kilometres.
• It was first flight-tested from Chitradurga in early 2025, then trialled again at Pokhran in April 2026.
• The Pokhran trial demonstrated a strike range beyond 700 kilometres, using coordinated swarm attacks.
• This indigenous push fits India’s broader “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” goal of cutting import dependence in defence.

Test Yourself

Please wait…

1. What is the defining feature of a loiter munition, distinguishing it from a regular armed drone?

It hovers over an area, then attacks by crashing into its target with an explosive warhead

It only carries surveillance cameras and no weapon

It can only be launched from a fixed ground silo

It requires no GPS or navigation system at all

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From Operation Sindoor to the Field Army Great to Know

• During Operation Sindoor, on 7-8 May 2025, India struck targets deep inside Pakistan.
• Indian forces used Israeli-origin Harop loitering munitions against Pakistani air defence systems.
• Strikes hit sites in and around Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Karachi, including radar installations.
• This significantly damaged Pakistan’s air-defence early-warning network, per Indian assessments.
• The Army has since raised new units built specifically around drones and loiter munitions.
• Bhairav Light Commando Battalions, announced 26 July 2025, handle cross-border interdiction and reconnaissance.
• Shaktibaan artillery regiments add dedicated drone batteries alongside their traditional guns.
• A Shaktibaan regiment’s loiter munitions can strike up to 200 kilometres; its drones, up to 700 kilometres.
• Divyastra Batteries bring extended-range loitering munitions into standard artillery regiments too.
• On 14 August 2026, the Ministry of Defence signed a Rs 1,577 crore contract with Tata Advanced Systems and NIBE Private Limited for Loiter Munition Systems for the Artillery Regiments. (Source: PIB)
• The contract was signed under the Buy (Indian) category through the Fast Track Procedure.

Legacy

• India’s UAV fleet has grown fast: fewer than a dozen platforms in 2020, over 140 by March 2026.
• These platforms now span nine different categories, from surveillance to strike.
• India’s wider drone ecosystem includes over 38,500 registered drones and nearly 40,000 certified pilots.
• Loiter munitions offer precision-strike capability at a fraction of a missile’s cost.
• They mark a real shift in Indian military doctrine, toward mass-deployable, drone-centric warfare.