Adani Defence Aerospace Center, Shamshabad unveils Drishti 10 Starliner UAV for Indian Navy

HYDERABAD: Minister for IT, E&C, Industries & Commerce, and Legislative Affairs, D. Sridhar Babu, termed Telangana as the most vibrant aerospace ecosystem in the country today.

The Minister participated in the unveiling of the indigenously manufactured Drishti 10 Starliner Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for the Indian Navy at Adani Defence and Aerospace Center Shamshabad on Wednesday.

Ajay Bhatt, Rakshya Rajya Mantri, Ministry of Defence, Admiral Hari Kumar - Chief of Naval Staff, Indian Navy, Lt. Gen Ajay Kumar Suri Director General Aviation, Indian Army, Ashish Rajvanshi, president and CEO, Adani Defence & Aerospace, Jeet Adani, promoter and director, Adani Airports and Jayesh Ranjan Principal Secretary for IT and Industries were also present.

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The Ministers stated that the aerospace, aviation, and space industries were a thrust sector for Telangana State. He said that Telangana has several Aerospace and allied parks to host aerospace manufacturing, servicing, engineering, and training firms.

He pointed out that Telangana’s industrial policy was hailed as the most industry-friendly policy in the industry. “Telangana has over 1000 MSMEs in Aerospace and allied sectors, and the state periodically hosts supply chain events to onboard local MSMEs into the global aerospace supply chain,” he said.

Sridhar Babu said that the state attracted multiple mega-investments from Global Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, GE Aviation, Safran, Rafael Advanced Systems, Elbit Systems, etc. Each of these global investors was committed to repeat investments every few years

He said that the state had won the biennial Best State Awards for Aerospace from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India, consistently thrice in a row (2018, 2020, and 2022). The state was also ranked No. 1 in the sector for the reference period of 2016-2020. Hyderabad also was adjudged number one in the Financial Times FDA Global Rankings, recognised as the most cost-effective Aerospace city of the future (2020-21).

“We will create an ecosystem where a level playing field shall be facilitated for the players in aerospace or any other sector, contributing to our state's progress and development,” Srihar Babu added.

The Adani Defence & Aerospace

The Adani Defence & Aerospace in a short span of 10 months, established the first carbon aerostructures manufacturing line for UAVs. At present, Adani engages with more than 25 suppliers in Hyderabad.

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Adani being one of the largest certified partners for DRDO; had been awarded seven prestigious missile programs and Hyderabad was selected to become the production centre for these missiles going forward.

Adani had facilitated exports in defence from Hyderabad, having exported more than 20 unmanned aerial systems to international markets. Adani had played a critical role in the Indian defence sector and ‘Make in India’ initiatives. Adani would further ramp up investments and allied capabilities in the state in Defence and Aerospace manufacturing.