Why in News?
- The maiden flight marks the first instance in India's defence history of an indigenously designed, developed, and manufactured jet-powered loitering munition fitted with a fully indigenous power plant taking to the skies.
About Divyastra Mk3:
- It is an indigenous loitering munition (kamikaze drone or suicide drone).
- It was developed by Lucknow-based defence startup Kawa UAV Pvt. Ltd (HoverIt).
- It is designed to destroy high-value enemy assets, infrastructure, and personnel in a warzone by striking the target directly with an onboard explosive warhead.
- Features:
- It is powered by an indigenous jet-propulsion system developed by New Delhi-based DG Propulsion.
- It features autonomous flight control and AI-enabled target-engagement
Why Does Jet Propulsion Matter?
- Its propulsion system sets it apart from many conventional drones and one-way attack UAVs because it uses a jet engine rather than a propeller-driven piston engine or an electric motor.
- Conventional UAVs such as Iran’s Shahed-136 use an internal-combustion engine to drive a propeller, an architecture that generally prioritises endurance, simplicity, and relatively low-cost operation.
- Divyastra Mk3, by contrast, uses a compact indigenous jet engine designed to give it a higher speed.
- This could reduce the time available for an adversary to detect, track, and engage the incoming weapon.
- This makes the Mk3 closer in concept to a small jet aircraft than to a conventional propeller-driven UAV.
