A US-leased MQ-9B drone operated by the Indian Navy crashes in the Bay of Bengal, raising questions about India's drone capabilities and ongoing defense negotiations.

"A High Altitude Long Endurance Remotely Piloted Aircraft (HALE RPA) leased by the Indian Navy operating from INS Rajali, Arakkonam (near Chennai) encountered a technical failure at about 1400 hrs whilst on a routine surveillance mission which could not be reset in flight," the Navy said in a statement.

An MQ-9B Sea Guardian drone, leased by the Indian Navy, encountered a technical failure during a surveillance mission near Chennai and was safely ditc

In 2020, the Indian Navy had taken on lease two MQ-9B Sea Guardian drones from American defence major General Atomics for a period of one year for surveillance in the Indian Ocean.

The MQ-9B drone is a variant of the MQ-9 'Reaper' which was used to launch a modified version of the Hellfire missile that eliminated al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in the heart of Kabul in July 2022.

An Indian Navy MQ-9B Sea Guardian drone, leased from General Atomics, experienced a technical failure during a surveillance mission near Chennai. The drone was safely ditched at sea. The Navy is investigating the incident as India plans to procure 31 MQ-9B Predator drones for enhanced surveillance.