Indian Navy opens investigation after local version of Elbit drone crashed during training

The Indian Navy has initiated an investigation following the crash of a Drishti 10 UAV, a locally manufactured version of the Israeli Elbit Hermes 900 Starliner, last Wednesday near Drampar in Gujarat during a training sortie. This marks the second such incident in under two years. The Adani Group and Elbit Systems stated it would be "premature" to comment on the circumstances, noting they "do not have visibility of the mission undertaken at the time of the incident." The Starliner, India's first domestically manufactured medium-altitude, long-endurance UAV with 60% Indian components, has been operational with the Indian Navy since 2024 and is considered a crucial platform for surveillance and reconnaissance.