Indian Army Seeks 1,000-km AI-Guided Loitering Munitions Under Make-II Route

A new class of long-range strike drone

The Indian Army has opened the door to a new category of indigenous precision weapon: a long-range, one-way attack drone — a loitering munition — designed to strike targets as far as 1,000 kilometres away. Reported on 13 July 2026, the Army has invited Indian industry to develop the system under its Long Range Loiter Munition (LRLM) project, signalling a decisive shift toward deep-strike autonomous capability built entirely at home.

Loitering munitions, often called "suicide" or "kamikaze" drones, blur the line between a reconnaissance drone and a guided missile. They can circle over a battlefield for extended periods, identify a target, and then dive into it, detonating an onboard warhead. What sets the LRLM apart from the tactical systems already in Indian service is its sheer reach and its emphasis on artificial intelligence.

What the Army wants

According to the requirements circulated to industry, the LRLM is expected to:

• Engage targets accurately at ranges of up to 1,000 km;
• Operate in GPS-denied environments, relying on AI-enabled navigation and targeting rather than satellite positioning that can be jammed or spoofed;
• Cruise at altitudes above 5,000 metres and reach speeds of at least 400 km/h;
• Carry a 25-kg warhead with a lethal radius of roughly 50 metres.

Each tactical set is to include a dedicated launch vehicle, a mobile ground control station, a flight simulator for operator training, and a complement of 15 one-way combat aerial vehicles. In other words, the Army is not merely buying a drone — it is buying a deployable, self-contained strike package.

The requirement for AI-enabled targeting in a GPS-denied setting is the technically demanding heart of the programme. It calls for onboard systems that can recognise and prioritise targets, navigate by terrain or visual reference, and complete a mission even when an adversary is actively degrading electronic and satellite links — precisely the conditions modern electronic warfare is designed to create.

The Make-II route

The Army wants the LRLM developed through the Make-II clause of India's defence acquisition procedure. Under Make-II, industry funds the research and development itself; the government commits to procuring the system only if it meets the laid-down specifications. The model transfers early financial risk to private developers while giving them a credible path to orders if they deliver — a structure intended to draw in agile startups and established firms alike without an upfront government outlay.

That approach fits a maturing domestic drone sector. India already fields indigenous loitering munitions such as the Nagastra-1 and has a growing ecosystem of unmanned-systems startups, giving the LRLM tender a base of companies capable of bidding.

Why now

The programme reflects lessons the Indian military has drawn from recent conflicts, where long-range one-way attack drones have repeatedly shown an ability to reach deep behind the front line at a fraction of the cost of cruise missiles. For a country with two contested land borders, a cheap, mass-producible weapon that can strike high-value targets a thousand kilometres away — command posts, air-defence radars, logistics nodes — offers meaningful strategic leverage.

The insistence on GPS-denied operation is equally telling. Contested electromagnetic environments have exposed the fragility of drones that depend on satellite navigation, and India's own trials have shown how jamming and spoofing can neutralise systems that look capable on paper. Building AI-based navigation and targeting into the requirement from the outset is an attempt to design that vulnerability out.

The indigenisation logic

The LRLM sits within a broader Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) push to reduce dependence on imported military hardware and to build a sovereign base for the technologies — autonomy, AI, propulsion, warheads — that define modern warfare. By routing the effort through Indian industry under Make-II, the Army is betting that domestic developers can close the capability gap while keeping the underlying know-how and supply chain within the country.

What to watch

As an industry solicitation rather than a signed contract, the LRLM is at an early stage, and much will depend on how many developers respond and whether any can meet the demanding AI and range targets. Key questions include which propulsion approach bidders adopt to combine 1,000-km reach with a 25-kg payload, how they demonstrate reliable performance under jamming, and how quickly a system that clears trials can move to series production. If the programme succeeds, it would give India one of the longest-ranged indigenous loitering munitions in the world — and a template for developing frontier defence technology through private industry.

Sources

• The Week — "Indian Army on the hunt for its next big AI-powered weapon with 50-metre kill radius" (13 July 2026): https://www.theweek.in/news/defence/2026/07/13/indian-army-on-the-hunt-for-its-next-big-ai-powered-weapon-with-50-metre-kill-radius.html
• idrw — "Indian Army Seeks Indigenous 1,000 km Long-Range Loitering Munitions with AI Targeting Under Make-II Programme": https://idrw.org/indian-army-seeks-indigenous-1000-km-long-range-loitering-munitions-with-ai-targeting-under-make-ii-programme/
• ELE Times — "Indian Army Seeks Indigenous AI-enabled Attack Drones with 1,000-km Strike Range": https://www.eletimes.ai/indian-army-seeks-indigenous-ai-enabled-attack-drones-with-1000-km-strike-range
• Indian Masterminds — "Indian Army 1,000 km one-way attack drones explained": https://indianmasterminds.com/news/defence/indian-army-1000-km-one-way-attack-drones-explained-216735/