DRDO-developed Netra AEW&C, India’s ‘eye in the sky’, is combat-ready as IAF gets final operational clearance
On 25 June 2026, the Indian Air Force received the Final Operational Clearance (FOC) for the Netra Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) system, in a ceremony at DRDO's Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) in Bengaluru.
Netra is an indigenously developed airborne surveillance platform mounted on a modified Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft; its FOC declaration means the system has completed all trials and is now fully combat-ready.
The IAF currently operates three Netra Mk-1 aircraft; the central government has additionally approved development of six Netra Mk-1A aircraft with enhanced sensors and longer-range radars capable of tracking low-observability targets including drones and stealth platforms.
The FOC follows an Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) granted in October 2017 after trials at Bhisiana; the first aircraft was handed over to the IAF in February 2017, with the second and third joining the fleet in 2019 and 2023 respectively.
The development represents a significant milestone in India's Aatmanirbhar Bharat defence indigenisation drive, reducing dependence on imported airborne surveillance platforms.
AEW&C Systems — Concept and Strategic Role
Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) systems are aircraft-mounted radar and command platforms that detect, track, and coordinate responses to aerial and surface threats far beyond the horizon — well past what ground-based radars can see (typically 400–600 km radar range versus ~150 km for surface radars). They serve simultaneously as a "flying command post" — integrating air-to-air and surface-to-air data and directing fighter aircraft, missile batteries, and naval assets in real time.
Key Details
- AEW&C aircraft can detect low-flying targets that ground radars miss due to Earth's curvature (radar horizon problem).
- Typical capabilities: simultaneous tracking of hundreds of aircraft/missiles; identification friend-or-foe (IFF); secure data-links to ground command centres.
- Global benchmarks: USA's Boeing E-3 Sentry (AWACS); Israel's Phalcon (inducted by IAF earlier, 3 aircraft); Russia's A-50; China's KJ-2000.
- India operates both Israeli Phalcon (3 aircraft, inducted 2009-2011) and indigenous Netra — the latter is for a different threat tier and is more deployable given its smaller ERJ-145 platform.
Netra's FOC makes it the first indigenously developed AEW&C system to achieve full operational status in the Indian Air Force.
DRDO and CABS — India's Defence R&D Architecture
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), established in 1958, functions under the Ministry of Defence and operates 41+ specialised laboratories and establishments across India. CABS — the Centre for Airborne Systems — is the nodal DRDO laboratory based in Bengaluru responsible for all airborne electronic systems, including Netra, mission computers, and radar/electronic warfare suites.
Key Details
- DRDO's mandate: indigenise critical defence technologies; reduce India's dependence on foreign military imports.
- DRDO's role in Netra: overall systems integration, mission software, radar development (Active Electronically Scanned Array — AESA type), and structural modifications to the Embraer airframe.
- Other DRDO programmes: LCA Tejas (with ADA), Agni/Prithvi/BrahMos missile systems (jointly with ISRO/Russia), QRSAM, VSHORAD Manpad.
- IOC vs FOC: Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) clears a platform for limited operational use under specific conditions; Final Operational Clearance (FOC) certifies full combat readiness across the complete operational envelope.
CABS is the host agency for the FOC ceremony; the milestone validates DRDO's capacity for complex airborne systems integration — a domain where most countries rely on foreign suppliers.
Netra Mk-1 — Technical and Platform Details
Netra Mk-1 is mounted on a modified Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet — a Brazilian-origin platform procured and extensively modified to military standards in India. The modifications include: Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar; an indigenous mission management system; in-flight refuelling capability (probe added); satellite communications; advanced electronic support measures (ESM) for signals intelligence; structural reinforcement; and aerodynamic modifications for antenna integration.
Key Details
- Platform: Embraer ERJ-145 (Brazil); three procured and modified for IAF.
- IOC: October 2017 (after Bhisiana trials).
- Mk-1 fleet: first aircraft (Feb 2017), second (2019), third (2023).
- Mk-1A: 6 additional aircraft approved; enhanced radar range capable of detecting drones and stealth aircraft.
- The Netra's radar can reportedly detect fighter-sized targets at ranges of 350–400 km.
The FOC closes the Mk-1 programme's formal qualification cycle; the Mk-1A approval signals the next phase of India's indigenous AEW&C roadmap.
IAF Modernisation — Indigenisation Trajectory
India's defence imports have historically accounted for 60–70% of procurement; the Aatmanirbhar Bharat in defence initiative (2020 onwards) has set targets to shift this ratio through a Positive Indigenisation List (PIL) that bars fresh import of listed systems. AEW&C systems are on the PIL — Netra Mk-1A will replace future import dependency in this category.
Key Details
- Defence indigenisation milestones: LCA Tejas (Mk-1A order for 83 aircraft), TPOD targeting pod, Pinaka MLRS, Akash SAM, Netra AEW&C.
- Positive Indigenisation Lists (PIL I, II, III): cumulatively over 500 defence items reserved for domestic procurement.
- DefExpo and iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) support MSME participation in defence production.
Netra's FOC is a concrete deliverable of India's Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat defence policy, reducing the operational gap created by the smaller Phalcon AWACS fleet.
- FOC ceremony date: 25 June 2026, CABS DRDO, Bengaluru
- System: Netra AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control)
- Developer: DRDO's CABS (Centre for Airborne Systems), Bengaluru
- Aircraft platform: Modified Embraer ERJ-145
- Netra Mk-1 fleet: 3 aircraft (IAF)
- First aircraft delivered: February 2017
- IOC date: October 2017 (trials at Bhisiana)
- Second aircraft inducted: 2019; Third: 2023
- Netra Mk-1A: 6 aircraft approved (enhanced sensors, anti-stealth/anti-drone radar)
- DRDO established: 1958; under Ministry of Defence; 41+ labs
- India also operates: Israeli Phalcon AWACS (3 aircraft, inducted 2009–2011)
- Radar type: AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array)
- Modifications include: in-flight refuelling, satcom, ESM, AESA radar, structural changes