Indigenous High-Altitude Platform System: India’s Stratospheric Surveillance Capability
10 October 2026
PRERNA FOR IAS
Mehnat Aapki, Guidance Humari
Roz ki Prelims Practice — Experts ke Saath
Indigenous High-Altitude Platform System: India’s Stratospheric Surveillance Capability
Context: On 6 October 2026, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight-tested an indigenously developed High-Altitude Platform System (HAPS). The experimental platform reached 21 km above mean sea level and remained at about 20 km for more than 30 minutes before being commanded to descend and being safely recovered.
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DRDO successfully tested indigenous High-Altitude Platform System at 21 km altitude. HAPS bridges gap between drones and satellites for persistent ISR, border surveillance and disaster communication.
Keywords
HAPShigh-altitude platformDRDOstratospheric surveillanceAatmanirbhar Bharatborder monitoringISRaerial platform