EXCLUSIVE: What India’s Stealth UCAV ‘AURA’ May Look Like

Commissioned exclusively for Livefist, and unofficially endorsed by a couple of people familiar with the secret programme, these are the first 3D artist’s impressions of India’s stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle, AURA, a programme first revealed here on Livefist two years ago. Currently in the preliminary design phase, the AURA is likely to draw design philosophies and technologies from the European flying wing UCAV concepts. Artist Anurag Rana had little to work with apart from the scant impressions that appeared here on Livefist from official documentation. As more details emerge, these impressions will be progressively updated and modified, so stay tuned.

Art / Anurag Rana

59 thoughts on “EXCLUSIVE: What India’s Stealth UCAV ‘AURA’ May Look Like”

  1. The programme will remain at revelation stage for many years to draw the bucks and more bucks by the so called scientists recruited through reservations and South Indian lobbyists of DRDO !

  2. man if DRDO manages to compleate thos project in another 6-7 years it will be amazing. Shiv sir i waas watching your piece which u did on the joint command in andaman and nicobar when the soldiers were attacking some beach head i saw the gear they were wearing all the body armour, helmets and tactical gear all seemed outdated like ww2 era, is DRDO or the govt doing something about modernizing these.

  3. sir any progress in the induction of big hitting artillary towed and self propelled. and wat abt the APC's both tracked and wheeled

  4. Hey Shiv,
    Your fans would appreciate an article about FINSAS.

    Also it would be really nice if you post the picture of Arjun mk2 or just the artistic impression of arjun mk2.

    According to recent article on IBN, IN is building a trimaran design for its future warship. Which project is this ?

    Can you also post the artistic impression of P15b DDG, P17a FFG or P28a ASW corvette ? Also please post the latest picture of Kolkatta class DDG ?

    ——————————

    To Rahul Devnath, have you seen neuron or taranis or US based UCAV or Chinese UCAVs. All of them have almost identical designs. In short you can tell all of them to be modified version of each other.

  5. hope it will fly by 2040, la la la la ..successfully…lalalalalala…na na na just Tejas Experience but really feel jealous from Pakistan..no matter what we do..they just copy us and do it better..for example: our nuke tests were fissures..theirs sucess..our Missiles dumbos compared to theirs…out Tejas..their J-17..our Arjun their Al-Khalid..our Arihant..their wud be XYZ..our Frigates..their F-22…but yeah we buy better…their f-16 our MKI and Rafale ..their Mirgaes our mirages ..and list goes on and on…

  6. This will be delivered when!!! Maybe 2050 or never, given the overblown expectations that DRDO and other public sector PSUs set out. They advertise way more than they can deliver.

    We can keep imagining all we can, but ultimately nothing gets delivered.

  7. Its a good concept. Even if this will only result in a paper airplane, its still a good exercise.

    It take time to get good at this. Even the US, with far more resources and years of experience, has had many failures before getting it right.

    Cujo

  8. How about we have a policy of no new projects for DRDO till Tejas and the MBT (mark 2) get FOC.

    I am sick of all this propaganda. if we want a true indigenisation policy we will open up the field and the purse strings to private operators as well.

  9. Oh!! One more picture relese by DRDO… abhi LCA Rpoject finish hua nahi k drawing board pe naye Picture bana na shuru!!! I dont trust on DRDO.

  10. In whatever manner they design, but they should put a really double powered engine from the very beginning. That may save from a lot of harassment later.

    Just see! Our Marut, Arjun and Tejas have given a lot of problems only because they were admittedly under powered.

    I think if they can adopt modular and/or open scale concept to it, it will be the best and easiest later.

  11. Right now they can't even operationalize tiny handheld UAVs that are basically one step up from toys.

    And now they dream of something like this. Just do another 'partnership' like PAK-FA and get the IAF a version of the BAE Taranis, Dassault Neuron, MiG SKAT or X-47B.

  12. it doesn't matter for me anything as far as these things are better protecting our Country.

    Having Indian made weapons are always good for us.

  13. I don't think this is the right design. Every stealth bomber like B-2, BAE Taranis, Dassault Neuron, MiG SKAT or X-47B have a zig-zag aft part. There is a reason why all their designs are like that and so will the AURA.

  14. I suggest that all those who do not believe in DRDO should start collecting funds for import of goodies for the services, because there is not enough money for importing expensive equipment. The services will be happy they operate only foreign maal and DRDO baiters will be happy that none of the indigenous equipment is ever used by Indian forces. To hell with the Government and to hell with the tax payer. Next, those in the services will insist that all their daily needs also should be imported, for which our friends should start a new collection drive. All the best.

  15. this r all just dream which will never come true…..from past legacy we can make out….LCA delay ?????
    1. by the time it s inducted in the airfoce it will be out dated stuff
    2.

  16. It is sooo stealthy that none can touch it, see it or feel it. That way most of DRDOs initiatives are super stealthy as well /sarcasm

  17. should hav… provisions for stores… over wing… side fuselage… comparment for… AAM… and belly comparment for… LGB… Bunker Busting Rockets…

  18. all those stupid people who say its not possible….drdo will fail etc etc and all bullcrap…

    http://www.facebook.com/OfficialKalam

    mindless creatures…one guy said these pics released by drdo…another says legacy continues…another says no more projects till LCA and ARJUN are complete…

    ya sure…those drdo labs which are not involved in LCA and Arjun shud be shut…

    failure means we shud not try again…

    ignorance at its best…u people are the ones who are bound to send india's wealth abroad…good going guys…pathetic attitude

  19. anon@11:26 yes, yes we'll make compartments for everything. also we'll put one pantry compartment and one a/c compartment.

    and for 5 years.. i wonder who believes the words of drdo anymore. for sure, the service chiefs don't. i have better model planes that actually fly than these folks and my budget is 0.000001% of theirs.

  20. DRDO is going in right direction … after some years manned aircrafts will be replaced by UAVs … with new anti-aircraft missiles it will be useless to have large aircrats and jets …

  21. Anon @ 10: 08,

    We don't have money to keep blowing on DRDO and the Defense PSU's govt job security either. We've given them complete monopoly over defence R & D for 50 years and gotten pathetic results. Even countries with smaller defence industries and budgets than India have developed more, like Ukraine, Poland, Sweden, Turkey etc.

    The honest truth is unless we have a competetive environment where Defence companies have to do or die without orders, we cannot have progress.

    Take UAVs for instance. Various private players have offered UAV designs that are probably more likely to get off the drawing board than NAL/DRDO's fantasies(simply because without a marketable product they have no profit). But the Socialist UPA has brushed them all off in favour of pipe dreams like AURA that stay in the CGI stage forever.

  22. @Gautam

    either ur being ignorant or u dont have the idea about number of projects that are being handled by the drdo….

    i agree with ur 2nd para to have competitive environment…

    but frankly speaking ur not being ethical by saying "PATHETIC RESULTS"

  23. All this is great.. but i am looking fwd 2 seeing the Tejas Mk2,Navy LCA AMCA first and then this AURA. It sounds and looks good.. All the best guys..

  24. – 40% of DRDO projects are on Drawing Board.
    – 30% of DRDO projects are on models (Toys)
    – 25% DRDO PRojects are under trils from last 3 to 4 decades
    – 5% of DRDO Projects are finished but Armed forces refuses to accept it..

    this is all the story about.

    Jai Hind
    Nishant

  25. The babu-worshipping simpletons are back to spamming 'How do you know, DRDO is GOOD!'

    The proof is in the pudding. How much has DRDO actually delivered in operational service with the armed forces in recent years, that too on time and on budget? We keep reading news articles on endless missile tests, flight tests, CGI drawings, speeches, papers and presentations.

    But the results? Close to 0. Saras, IJT, LCA, LCH etc have been flying for years and years. RTA, AMCA, AURA etc exist only on paper even after all these years. And this is just referring to aerospace projects!

    Yes, the babudom monopoly on defence sector has to go. Spin off DRDO labs, HAL, BEL and Ordinance Factories to various private sector enterprises and have competitive bidding for domestic defence products just as is done elsewhere in the world including even Socialist Russia and China.

  26. @Gautam

    look i am not a person that totally supports or opposes something

    but the problem i have is with ignorance…

    NO DOUBT DRDO HAS FAILED to deliver quite a lot of things on time and enjoys monopoly in defence industry

    but the way it is criticized is just unacceptable to me…

    there are NUMEROUS other projects (small scale ones) where drdo has come out with awesome results but nevertheless…since they were not ambitious projects…u can hardly find their mention anywhere in general media…

    and the way ur commenting…surely u havent done ur homework on projects of drdo…

    ps: i am nowhere associated with drdo…

  27. You people are ALL crazy! You have your wishbone where your backbone should be! Artist impressions are good for dreamers only. And BTW, communism will be much better for India than its corrupt democracy and corrupt, trashy people. Every Indian has become a crook. Every Indian is deceptive in his/her veins. It's the same deception as implying that an artist's impression is about to mature as the real thing.

  28. I am a DRDO supporter. I wish to give them some unsolicited advise. Formal project commencement for AURA and AMCA should be delayed substantially. However, work on subsystems, components should start at the earliest as internal R&D projects. There are a lot of cynics and enemies of domestic initiatives in the country, beware – some of them very important and influential.

  29. Basically, all UCAVs, including Aura, Neuron are so far copy cat of the US UCAVs and B-2. Not very creative. But there is much more to all aspect stealth than shape. Material, coatings and even part fits (aka seams) all play a major role. when you look at the seams and the part fits of a Rafale, you can see right away its RCS is not exactly reduced, and we are not talking about its prominent canards. The best material, the best coatings and part fits, you need to go looking in Japan.

  30. Somewhat Positive Indian said…
    @Nishant

    did u actually waste time on counting that or its just talking in thin air??

    @some what positive Indian:

    I am only investing my time behind productive things… not like drdo guys…

    & the 2nd thing in simple hindi:
    Me DRDO ka dushman nahi hu but mera ek hi objection hai k agar aap apne projects time pe finish nahi kar sakte to media me bade bade daave kyu karte ho??!!

    You people should take learning from china they are keeping silence till the weapons got inducted in their armed forces…

  31. First complete the tasks in hand, complete LCA in time, then complete AMCA. It seems like DRDO comes up wild dreams ax payers money and then wastes tax payers money to fill their pockets. DRDO should be renamed Defense Research and Delay Organization.

  32. Freedom of speech doesn't mean giving negative comments. You are reflecting your mindset… Go get a life and do something useful for the country!!

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