Nagastra-1 Loitering Munition

Nagastra-1 is India’s first indigenously designed and series-produced man-portable loitering munition (“kamikaze drone”), developed by Nagpur-based Economic Explosives Limited (EEL, part of the Solar Group) in collaboration with Bengaluru startup Z-Motion Autonomous Systems, for use by the Indian Army’s infantry and artillery formations.^[1]

Design and Capability

Nagastra-1 weighs 8–9 kg and carries a high-explosive fragmentation warhead of 1–1.5 kg, powered by an electric motor for low-noise operation. It offers a flight endurance of around 60 minutes, an operational range of 30–40 km, and a flight ceiling exceeding 4,500 m, striking targets with a claimed precision of around 2 metres circular error probable (CEP) using GPS-enabled guidance.^[1]

The system operates in two modes: a man-in-the-loop mode allowing real-time operator control out to 15 km, and a fully autonomous mode extending effective range to 30 km. It is equipped with day/night surveillance cameras for target acquisition and battle-damage assessment. Unusually for a loitering munition, if a target is not identified or a mission is aborted, Nagastra-1 can be recalled and recovered via a parachute soft-landing system, allowing the airframe to be reused rather than expended on every sortie.^[1]

Indigenous Content and Induction

Nagastra-1 has more than 75% indigenous content, positioning it as a flagship “Atmanirbhar Bharat” precision-strike product, and was set for induction into the Indian Army from 2024 onward as a low-cost precision-strike capability for infantry and artillery units, complementing India’s growing loitering-munition and counter-drone ecosystem.^[2]

Specifications

Sources

1. Wikipedia, “Nagastra-1.”
2. AlphaDefense.in, “India’s First Indigenous Loiter Munition, Nagastra-1, Set for Indian Army Induction.”