In a major milestone, the autonomous flying wing technology's first flight was successfully completed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) on Friday from the Aeronautical Test Range in Chitradurga, Karnataka.

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) development and design are handled by Bengaluru's Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a renowned research facility run by DRDO. A tiny turbofan engine powers it. The aircraft's entire flight control and avionics systems, as well as its airframe and undercarriage, were created domestically.

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)
DRDO, Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)Twitter

In a statement, DRDO said, "In a major success towards developing unmanned combat aircraft, the maiden flight of the Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator was carried out successfully from the Aeronautical Test Range, Chitradurga, Karnataka today."

It further went on to add, "Operating in a fully autonomous mode, the aircraft exhibited a perfect flight, including take-off, waypoint navigation and a smooth touchdown. This flight marks a major milestone in terms of proving critical technologies towards the development of future unmanned aircraft and is a significant step towards self-reliance in such strategic defence technologies."

Define Minister Congratulates DRDO

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO on successfully carrying out the maiden flight of an unmanned flight aircraft.

He tweeted, "Congratulations to @DRDO_India on the successful maiden flight of the Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator from Chitradurga ATR. It is a major achievement towards autonomous aircraft which will pave the way for Aatmanirbhar Bharat in terms of critical military systems."

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