The Indian Air Force is set to buy six new indigenous Netra-I surveillance aircraft in an effort to boost its surveillance capabilities along the borders with China and Pakistan. The Netra-I Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft programme is based on the Brazilian Embraer aircraft.
The Air Force already has two Netra-I aircraft which were developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and six more will be bought in a revival of the programme as. “As per the plans, the six new aircraft would be made in India by the DRDO and would be provided to the Air Force in a project of over Rs 8,000 crore,” government officials
The surveillance planes will be made by modifying the Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft.
The DRDO had earlier planned to build six Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) on an Airbus 330 aircraft for which a facility was planned to be created in Bengaluru. It is also working on modifying A-321 aircraft for the Netra-2 project for surveillance planes.
