Drones are taking centre stage in modern warfare. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the conflicts in West Asia have demonstrated the importance of these unmanned systems. The Indian defence establishment too is increasingly expanding the scope and use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) as a central tool in any future conflict. The armed forces are reshaping their operational doctrines and tactics to cater for deployment of unmanned systems as well as counter unmanned systems.
India demonstrated the use of UAS systems during
Operation Sindoor in May last year. In that 88-hour conflict India used unmanned systems to hit targets deep inside Pakistan, as well as destroying critical elements of Pakistan's air defence architecture. At the same time, Pakistan's massive drone assault of India was neutralised by Indian defences.
Operation Sindoor: 14-Day Silence That Changed India’s War Doctrine Forever Completely
Speaking at an event in New Delhi,
Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh stated “This topic of drones and Unmanned Aerial (UA) systems is very relevant It is a reality. So, there is no denying that the battlefield has shifted. We are shifting from concentrated Air power to a decentralised and autonomous way. We must understand that the Unmanned Aerial systems are extensions of Air power. There is also reduced risk in terms of human life during the operation".
Operation Sindoor marked a turning point where unmanned systems were deployed as primary strike platforms under the nuclear overhang, signalling their arrival as decisive tools of combat. As the Armed forces are working to increase jointness between the three services, are also working to improve coordination in the realm of unmanned systems.
Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (CISC), Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit emphasised the imperative of integration said, “Forging tri-service energy and integration in UAS and counter UAS is not merely desirable but is a strategic imperative. No single service can fight the next war alone. Only collective leadership, integrated systems and shared situational awareness can deliver decisive victory. Unmanned Aerial Systems are no longer just enablers, they are a means of warfare in their own right. In the operation, drones became a weapon of choice for the first time in the Indo‑Pak conflict. Drones are only the opening act of the coming robotic war.”
Air Chief Marshal Singh also spoke about the importance of coordination, stating "When we talk about counter UA systems, it is like a cat‑and‑mouse game I think we have done reasonably well in Operation Sindoor, and it was possible because there was coordination. We will have all three services operating in the same Air Space, then there has to be total coordination".
From the Army’s perspective, Director General, Army Aviation, Lt Gen Vinod Nambiar stressed the industrial and strategic dimension: “At a time when the future of warfare is being reshaped by Unmanned systems. The dialogue is not optional, but essential. The battle space of tomorrow will be defined by how effectively we harness Unmanned systems and how resiliently we defend against them. UAVs now are multi‑dimensional in which they support logistics, communication, electronic warfare, search and rescue, maritime patrol and NBC (Nuclear Biological & Chemical) defence.”
India’s defence establishment is converging on a new doctrine that places unmanned systems at pivotal role in combat. The Air Force views UAS as extensions of air power, demanding both coordination across services and the rapid development of counter‑systems.
Together, these perspectives underline that unmanned systems are not just reshaping tactics but redefining the very architecture of warfare. Operation Sindoor served as the proving ground, but conflicts of the future will require deeper integration, indigenous innovation, and relentless adaptation in the evolving cat‑and‑mouse race of drone and counter‑drone technologies.
