NEW DELHI: With drones taking centre stage in conflicts around the world, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has started work on the country’s first helicopter-dropped drone project, called ‘Vayu Baan’ (air arrow).Vayu Baan is an indigenous air-launched effects (ALE) programme designed to integrate unmanned aerial systems directly with manned rotary-wing platforms. It is a small, autonomous drone designed to be dropped from a moving helicopter mid-flight. Once released, the drone unfolds its wings, activates its propulsion and operates as either a surveillance asset or a precision-guided munition (kamikaze drone). The homegrown project is being led by IAF’s Directorate of Aerospace Design (DAD), Gandhinagar, which issued a request for proposal (RFP) recently, inviting bids from domestic vendors for the system’s design and development.Once airborne, Vayu Baan will transmit real-time video to operators and, if required, carry out a precision strike using a small warhead onboard. The drone is expected to have a range of over 50 km and an endurance of around 30 minutes.The drone will feature electro-optical and infrared sensors for target identification, with the ability to operate in GPS-jammed environments. IAF, which requires 10 drone units, along with two airborne and two ground control stations, aims to fast-track development, testing and delivery within a year.With ‘Vayu Baan’, IAF is set to join a select group of countries like the US and China that are working on air-launched unmanned systems. The US Army is investing in ALEs as part of its future vertical lift ecosystem. Key technologies include the Area-I ALTIUS (agile-launched, tactically integrated unmanned system), which has been demonstrated in trials launched from MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.China is focusing on integrating unmanned rotary-wing aircraft with its existing helicopter fleets, such as Z-20J, Z-10, and Z-19.