India has approved the acquisition of a fixed-wing High Altitude Pseudo Satellite (HAPS) capability to strengthen its persistent surveillance capabilities while awaiting the deployment of a 52-satellite military constellation expected to become operational by 2029.
The government has not disclosed the number of systems to be acquired, their specifications, or the selected developer. However, at least two Indian organizations—one state-owned and one private—are currently developing indigenous fixed-wing HAPS platforms.
A HAPS is a solar-powered unmanned aircraft designed to operate in the stratosphere at altitudes above 65,000 feet, enabling continuous surveillance over a designated area for weeks or even months. Unlike conventional UAVs such as the RQ-4 Global Hawk, which can remain airborne for just over a day, HAPS platforms generate electricity through solar panels during daylight and rely on rechargeable batteries for night operations, benefiting from the low-drag conditions of the stratosphere to maximize endurance.
India currently operates only around a dozen military and dual-use satellites for border and maritime surveillance, compared to China’s estimated fleet of nearly 300 military satellites. With such a limited constellation, low Earth orbit satellites revisit the same location only after several hours, creating surveillance gaps that may allow troop movements, missile deployments, or naval activities to go undetected.
A fixed-wing HAPS is expected to bridge this gap by providing uninterrupted optical, infrared, and signals intelligence (SIGINT) coverage across a radius of up to 500 km for extended durations while operating above adverse weather and beyond the reach of many air defense systems.
India is pursuing two indigenous HAPS programs. The first, led by CSIR–National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), completed subscale prototype flight trials in 2024 and has since advanced to higher-altitude testing and payload integration, including synthetic aperture radar demonstrations. Full-scale flight testing is planned for 2027, with operational induction targeted around 2030. The platform is designed to operate at altitudes of up to 75,000 feet for at least 90 days while carrying electro-optical/infrared sensors, SAR, and communications payloads.
The second program is being developed by Bengaluru-based NewSpace Research and Technologies, which received a Ministry of Defence-backed development contract in 2022. The company has conducted a phased flight-test campaign, including a 27-hour endurance flight at 26,000 feet in May 2024, setting a national record for an indigenous unmanned aircraft. The full-scale platform is expected to operate at approximately 65,000 feet for up to 90 days, with a maximum takeoff weight of around 450 kg, a wingspan of 24–25 meters, and a 35-kg payload for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), SIGINT, communications relay, and border and maritime surveillance missions.
