India drone imports set it apart as the worlds leader
While the government is slow to accept them, India drone imports outpace any other country in the world
The The Economic Times reports today that India drone imports put it at 22.5% of global drone imports. While the government regulators move at a snails pace the Times reports:
“With 22.5 per cent the world’s unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imports, between 1985 and 2014, India ranks first among drone-importing nations, followed by United Kingdom and France. UAVs, or drones as they are commonly known, are pilotless aerial vehicles used for reconnaissance, surveillance, intelligence gathering and aerial combat missions.
The advantage of UAVs is that they come at a fraction of the cost of manned aircraft with no risk to human lives. The data here relate to drone/UAV transfers (imports/exports) between countries. There are also drones that have been indigenously developed, so the actual number of UAVs possessed by each nation may be different. ”
As we recently noted, we are optimistic that the Indian government is moving in the right direction. Recent moves indicate that the regulations will be modeled on work taking place in the United States and the United Kingdom.
If the government is able to speed up the pace of regulation they are positioned, based upon Indian drone imports, to quickly become a leader in this space. The question is rather they will move too slowly to capture this market that is clearly ready to move.
Will India drone imports continue to lead the world? We will keep you up to date.
