New Delhi: DRDO officials in Maharashtra tested three remotely unmanned, weaponized boats in Pune on October six. This comes ahead of Defence Expo 2022. Notably, these boats were developed by DRDO in collaboration with the private start-up Sagar Defence Engineering, a defence production start-up.

Speaking to media after testing three boats in Maharashtra’s Pune, DRDO Research and Development Establishment Group Director PM Naik said, “With no human on the vessel, the video feed will be transferred to the ground control station. It will be useful for surveillance.”

Naik  said, “This boat is useful for reconnaissance & patrolling. Weapon is also mounted on the boat in case of any insurgence. We are currently testing this at Bhama Askhed Dam to build the confidence level of our team.”

Naik further informed that the boats are useful for surveillance purposes, patrols, and reconnaissance of overall maritime security.

Notably, the boats have an endurance of about four hours. Currently, the boat can sail at a maximum speed of 10 nautical miles/hour, but this can be further increased to 25 nautical miles. Some variants of these boats use an electric propulsion system with lithium batteries, while others have a petrol engine on board.