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Project Cheetah

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About The Project Cheetah

Amidst the border tensions with China, Indian Armed Forces have planned out to revive 'Project Cheetah' after being pending for a long time. You might be surprised to know that the approximated cost of the project is over 3,500 crores. Project Cheetah is aimed at reforming and ameliorating the drones in order to conduct offensive operations against the enemy. Through the project Cheetah, 90 Heron drones of the three services are set to be ameliorated to be armed having laser-guided bombs, air to ground and air-established anti-tank shepherded missiles.


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How Project Cheetah Benefits IAF?

Here is how project Cheetah benefits the IAF. The recently facilitated drones will help assist the Indian Air Force (IAF) for the purpose of keeping a watch on enemy locations from far off distances and will also aid them in regulating them through the satellite communication system. Apart from this the project Cheetah is advantageous to IAF in the following manner:-

  • The IAF is operating to upgrade and facilitate its fleet of Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Israeli-made Searcher accompanied with missiles under a top secret and categorized program code named 'Project Cheetah'.

  • The IAF is deciding to equip the Herons and Searchers with advanced snooping competencies and missiles that can target terrorists and their hideouts both within India and if needed, across the borders."

  • For the ambitious plan of action, which is anticipated to cost almost above Rs 10,000 crores, the Indian armed forces project cheetah is seeking out to join hands with the Israel defense major Israeli Aircraft Industry (IAI).

  • The UAVs can see targets with their scrutiny and snooping payloads, they shall also have the competency to strike instead of having to deploy other aircraft or assets to carry out that job.

  • With such a competency in its fold, in future framework if the Army units inform about any specific launch pad of terrorists getting active, the Air force can deploy its armed drones to release a silent punishment to terrorists from 30,000 feet above the ground.

  • "With such a competency by the way of drones, IAF can mark down terrorist targets both within and across the borders”.

  • After silently being suspended over PoK over reckoned launch pads for some time accumulating accurate intelligence the drones can establish an attack and return to the base causing more intense destruction than what the troops can do.

  • "The precision directed missiles would also aid in specific eradication of desired targets and there would be none or minimum collateral destruction in such operations."

  • India to now have fight off drones to conduct surgical strikes in future

  • Under Project Cheetah, the IAF is deciding to upgrade and facilitate its Israeli-made UAVs with missiles which will be capable of carrying out surgical strikes without risking the soldier’s lives.

  • After employing Special Forces troops in order to attack and damage terrorist launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), India is now deciding to add opposed drones to its fleet which can perform the same job without risking the lives of soldiers.

Who Will Head The Project Cheetah Committee?

The proposal of reviving the project is delivered to the newly created high-level defense ministry committee and will be headed by the head of all capital procurements of Indian Army—Ajay Kumar who is now in Navy and Air Force. 

Why The Revival Of Project Cheetah Has Been Proposed?

'Project Cheetah' revival comes in between the border tensions with China. Thus, the plan to revive Project Cheetah arrives at a time when the country is experiencing border tensions with China. Off late, a stand-off between China and India happens along the Actual Line of Control in eastern Ladakh.


The decision for the revival of the 'Project Cheetah' has been taken into consideration because of the recent border combat with China along the Actual Line of Control in eastern Ladakh. After almost two months of stalemate, the two countries planned to mutually disengage troops from friction points in Ladakh.


That being said, in spite of a few rounds of military-level talks, the disengagement of troops has not been fully executed by China in a few regions. India has put its demand for complete disengagement and status qua of Chinese troops from Ladakh forward.

Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

The Made in Israel, Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is a medium-altitude UAV and can bear up to 250 kg of weight including radar systems, thermo graphic camera, and airborne ground surveillance visible light etc. The Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicle is competent of returning to base autonomously with respect to lost communication.


Both the Indian Army and IAF use Israeli equipment including Herons. The Heron's UAVs are presently stationed in Ladakh and China borders to keep an eye on the disconnection by Chinese troops and their build-up through the Actual Line of Control in the future.

How Can Drones Help To Locate Terrorists?

Drones can be put to locate terrorists’ hideout in higher reaches in Kashmir where missiles can be securely fired to damage them without any fear of inducing any injury to the civilians.


In order to turn their surveillance drones into killer vehicles, the Indian Air Force has taken a sign from the US. For the Americans, drones are the tools of preference for taking out terrorist leaders or damaging their safe houses.


The Americans continuously smoke out terrorists utilizing their MQ-1 Predators and GlobalHawk as it has annihilated a few more than 2,500 terrorist leaders in Pakistan and Afghanistan alone during its war on terror in these countries.


India, so far, has not utilized air power in anti-terrorist functions in J&K or Northeast to take out terrorists as a policy to not to be observed being too tough within its own regions.


India recently incorporated helicopter gunships in order to eradicate terrorists who had made way to the Pathankot air base but that was within a military base and not in civilian locality. On contrary to India, Pakistan employs its American AH1 Cobra gunships widely against even surmised civilians as can be observed in its Operation Zarb-e-Azb in Taliban and Baloch regions within its own country.


FAQs on Project Cheetah

1. What are the upgrades to present drones to work in favor of India?

Presently, the Indian Air Force flies the Heron UAVs and Israeli-made Searcher II for the objective of reconnaissance and snooping. "With the amelioration in snooping competencies, the forces on ground would acquire the capability to receive pin-point intelligence about hideouts in regions where men need to be involved in operations”.


The amelioration would also enable the Indian Air Force ground station handlers to steer these aircraft from far distances and regulate them via satellite communication system.


The Indian armed forces project cheetah has been in the execution for quite some time and the government is also thinking of making additional participations through Indian agencies, including the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, in order to execute their expertise in the programme.

2. What are the advantages of the project Cheetah?

The remodeling of the Indian armed forces project cheetah will allow the armed powers to ground stations with respect to the working of the automatons from far separations and additionally control them through correspondence satellite framework. Furthermore, the redesigning will help with sticking point insight about safe houses where men were taken into account before.


The work will principally execute several Indian-designed arrangements consequently aiding with inducing India to become independent.