India’s UCAV CATS-Warrior.
HAL’s CATS Warrior – Tata ELxsi: January 2022, Bengaluru: India’s push towards next-generation air combat capabilities received a major boost as the CATS Warrior, a critical unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) under Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s Combat Air Teaming System (CATS), successfully cleared a key development milestone. The achievement was announced by TATA Elxsi, a key industry partner in the programme.
Designed as a “loyal wingman”, the CATS Warrior is intended to operate alongside manned fighter aircraft such as the Tejas, acting as a force multiplier in high-risk missions. The UCAV is capable of undertaking strike missions, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, electronic warfare, decoy roles and swarm operations, significantly reducing risks to human pilots in contested airspace. Its low-observable design, combined with Autonomous Take-off and Landing (ATOL) capability, enhances survivability and operational flexibility.
TATA Elxsi worked closely with HAL on the full-scale demonstrator, contributing expertise in airframe assembly, fuel storage systems and landing gear development. The collaboration brought together TATA Elxsi’s aerospace engineering capabilities with HAL’s long-standing aviation experience, enabling the demonstrator to be completed in just 14 weeks—an unusually compressed timeline that has set new benchmarks for indigenous defence projects under the Make in India initiative.
The project posed formidable challenges, with design, engineering, fabrication and validation all required to be completed within the tight schedule. Engineers had to meet exacting standards of dimensional accuracy, structural symmetry, weight optimisation and a completely leakproof fuel system, while also tackling complex air duct fabrication.
Work began with material selection and preliminary design, focusing on composites and advanced alloys to balance stealth, strength and weight. Digital design tools and simulations were extensively used to validate aerodynamic performance, structural integrity and integration with the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) platform. Stress analysis and optimisation ensured that safety margins exceeded prescribed defence standards, while refinements improved airflow efficiency without compromising low-observable characteristics.
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HAL employees after successful Engine Ground Run of CATS Warrior (January 11, 2025).
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Detailed airframe design, assembly jig development and demonstrator fabrication followed in rapid succession. Precision-engineered jigs enabled sub-millimetre accuracy during assembly, while advanced manufacturing techniques, including additive manufacturing, were used for complex components. Fuel systems, landing gear and internal bays were rigorously tested, with ground trials confirming structural strength, endurance and system reliability.
Testing and validation culminated in extensive ground runs and system integration exercises at HAL’s Bengaluru campus. Autonomous taxiing, ATOL algorithms and data links with the manned mothership were successfully demonstrated, validating the concept of manned–unmanned teaming. The full-scale prototype emerged flight-ready, meeting weight targets and prepared for further evaluations.
The successful completion of the CATS Warrior demonstrator in just 14 weeks highlights the growing maturity of India’s defence manufacturing ecosystem. The HAL–TATA Elxsi partnership not only delivered a critical loyal wingman capability but also accelerated pathways towards serial production, strengthening the Indian Air Force’s future combat edge and reinforcing India’s ambitions in advanced indigenous defence technologies.
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