GHAZIABAD, India — May 27, 2026 : Ghaziabad-based aerospace startup DroneYards Aerial Solutions Pvt. Ltd. has delivered 300 ordnance-dropping drones capable of deploying 51 mm mortar payloads to the Northern Command of the Indian Army, marking a notable addition to India’s expanding indigenous tactical drone inventory. The company announced the delivery in late May 2026 as part of its growing defense-focused manufacturing portfolio.
The unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are specifically engineered to carry and precisely deploy 51 mm mortar shells, a lightweight infantry munition widely used by the Indian Army for close-range engagements and suppressing enemy positions. By integrating mortar-dropping mechanisms into tactical drones, frontline troops gain the ability to conduct localized precision strikes against enemy trenches, bunkers, fortified positions, and concealed hideouts while maintaining stand-off distance from direct hostile fire.
According to the company, the drones supplied to the Northern Command are equipped with advanced electronic warfare (EW) capabilities intended to improve survivability and mission continuity in contested operational environments. The systems feature secure telemetry, triple radio redundancy, enhanced flight stability, and mission adaptability designed to maintain battlefield reliability during tactical operations where signal interference or electronic disruption may occur.
Military observers view the capability as particularly relevant for operations in mountainous and high-altitude sectors along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Line of Actual Control (LAC), where difficult terrain and obstructed lines of sight can limit conventional targeting methods. In such conditions, small ordnance-dropping drones offer infantry units the ability to strike localized targets using aerial deployment while reducing troop exposure in forward areas.
The newly delivered platforms also support real-time reconnaissance missions, enabling troops to gather battlefield intelligence while retaining the option for precision ordnance deployment using existing 51 mm mortar ammunition already in operational use by infantry formations. This dual-role capability strengthens lower-echelon tactical flexibility during frontline operations.
Headquartered in Kaushambi, Ghaziabad, DroneYards focuses on indigenous defense-grade unmanned systems, including customized combat UAVs, first-person view (FPV) drones, surveillance systems, and rapid deployment aerial platforms. The company states that its platforms are designed without foreign components in critical subsystems as part of efforts to strengthen domestic defense manufacturing capability.
The ordnance-dropping drone delivery follows DroneYards’ earlier supply of more than 200 FPV drones to the Indian Army in early 2026. That deployment included operator training for over 350 soldiers at forward locations, including areas near the Manipur–Assam border, aimed at improving tactical drone integration and field-level operational readiness.
In addition to the newly delivered 51 mm mortar-dropping systems, the company’s defense portfolio includes the VINASH kamikaze FPV drone, developed for precision-strike tactical missions, and the Dhanush night surveillance drone equipped for low-light monitoring and long-range aerial observation.
The procurement aligns with the Indian Ministry of Defence’s broader push under the “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” initiative to expand domestic sourcing of military equipment and reduce reliance on foreign defense imports. In recent years, the Indian Armed Forces have increasingly procured tactical drones, loitering munitions, logistics UAVs, and surveillance systems from Indian startups and MSMEs to
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