Overview
- An Indian Navy Drishti-10 unmanned aerial vehicle crash-landed in an open field near Dharampur village about 6 km from Porbandar, with officials confirming no injuries or ground damage.
- The aircraft took off from the Naval Air Enclave at Porbandar before going down and local navy, police and fire teams secured the site while residents who heard the impact were kept back.
- The Navy announced an investigation and technical experts are examining wreckage to establish whether a technical fault, loss of link, weather or another factor caused the crash.
- The Drishti-10 is a medium-altitude long-endurance surveillance drone built under a India-Israel collaboration and first inducted into the Navy in January 2024; the platform was involved in a previous crash off Porbandar during trials in January 2025.
- The incident raises questions about reliability and procurement as the Navy seeks persistent maritime surveillance and reporters say officials are examining fleet expansion plans and any operational lessons from the probe.