Drone Defense & Beyond: HSL Partners for Secure Naval Communications

Hindustan Shipyard Ltd. (HSL), a key defence PSU under the Ministry of Defence, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pentagon Rugged Systems India to jointly develop indigenous anti-drone and long-range secure communication systems for the Indian Navy.

Signed on July 5 in Visakhapatnam, the MoU addresses the rising threat of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in maritime zones. The anti-drone system will offer real-time detection, tracking, and neutralisation of hostile drones within a 30 km range, with jamming capabilities across the 400 MHz to 6 GHz spectrum—ensuring neutralisation without collateral damage.

The collaboration also aims to develop robust Non-Line-of-Sight (NLOS) long-range communication systems for reliable naval operations in coastal and open-sea environments. HSL Chairman and MD Commodore Hemant Khatri called the partnership a key step toward "Atmanirbhar Bharat in defence," enhancing naval preparedness and self-reliance. Integration trials are scheduled for the next quarter, with deployment on frontline naval vessels to follow.

News by Rahul Yelligetti.