A Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) drone had crashed in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district on September 17, 2019. This incident took place in an agricultural field in Jodichikkenahalli in Chitradurga district. As soon as the farmers heard a loud noise they came rushing to the spot from their fields. A statement released by DRDO said, “An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) being developed by the DRDO on experimental flight trial in new configuration crash-landed in fields near ATR Chitradurga. Data is being analyzed.” There is an outdoor testing and evaluating facility being set up by DRDO exclusively for unmanned and manned aircraft near its Chitradurga district headquarters. The DRDO drone crashed 17 km away from the facility. Soon, the incident was confirmed by Chitradurga Superintendent of Police Arun informing that a UAV known as the Rustom-2 drone crashed on the farm.

“It’s a Rustom-2 UAV from DRDO. Test trials were being conducted and it failed and fell in the open field. People were curious as to what it was and they gathered. We have cordoned off the area now and police are at the spot,” the police officer said. Rustom 2 is a medium-altitude UAV manufactured by the DRDO for the army, navy and air force. DRDO conducted the first flight of the Rustom 2 prototype in February last year from Chitradurga aeronautical test range. Rustom 2 will replace the Heron UAVs in the armed forces.