While negotiations are taking place between India and China for returning the drone, sources said the drone doesn't have a storage system
by Shaurya Karanbir Gurung
NEW DELHI: Details are now emerging that the Indian drone which had crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Sikkim sector had crashed about a week ago in China's Chumbi Valley located near the Doklam standoff site and where there is a concentration of Chinese troop deployments.
While the Heron drone would have sent back video feed to its command and control station moments before it crashed, its Digital Analytical System (DAS), which is similar to an aircraft's black box (preserves the flight history by recording different parameters), has been sent to its manufacturer, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), in Israel for analysing what went wrong.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) stated that the drone was on a training mission when it crashed. This was in response to China's Xinhua News Agency quoting the Chinese military stating that the drone had intruded Chinese airspace. Sources explained a training mission involves a drone flying about 25 km away from the LAC and is conducted to check if the system is working properly. It is different from an operational mission wherein the drone would fly close to the LAC, providing in-depth surveillance of the Chinese territory.
"The drone's communication link broke with the ground control station, it was regained and then lost again, preventing it from being controlled, before crashing in the Chumbi Valley," said a top government official.
The official added the drone which had taken off from a base in the Siliguri Corridor would have sent back video feed before hitting the ground. "The drone's DAS based at the control station has been sent to IAI to check what went wrong. The analysis will be out in a few weeks," said the official, adding that the weather could have played a role in the crash.
While negotiations are taking place between India and China for returning the drone, sources explained that the machine itself doesn't have a storage system. It is the DAS which stores everything. This removes the possibility of the Chinese trying to examine what India was watching.
While the Army says that the drone was not on a surveillance mission, what needs to be noted is the importance of the crash site-Chumbi Valley. This area adjoining the Doklam plateau is located between east Sikkim and Bhutan. Military analysts believe that in case of a conflict Chinese artillery can bombard Sikkim and the strategic Siliguri Corridor, which connects the primary military formations in the North East. This would prevent the movement of logistics and reinforcements to the North East.