It has been reported that India is actively pursuing the acquisition of five (5) Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) from United States under the DTTI. The procurement proposal worth $3 Billion involves the sale of one ISTAR aircraft by the US to India, and collaboration on the development of sensor package and other critical technologies for the replication of a similar capability in India by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) for an additional four aircraft of the type.
ABOUT ISTAR: The ISTAR combines Raytheon sensors and systems on a Bombardier platform. It is in service in the US and Royal Air Forces.
Basically, an ISTAR aircraft uses artificial intelligence, integrated onboard sensors and advanced processing rapidly and at long range to provide critical information on enemy movements, dispositions and communications in real time, equipping commanders with a clear, multi-faceted picture of the changes in the battlefield to take the right decisions.
