Key Terms & Concepts — UPSC Mains
FPV Drone
"A small, agile, low-cost drone piloted through goggles streaming a live camera feed, used as a precision strike weapon in modern warfare"
An FPV (First Person View) drone is a small unmanned aerial system where the operator wears goggles that display a real-time video feed from the drone's onboard camera, enabling precise manual piloting at high speeds (100-150 km/h) directly into targets. In military use, FPV drones are fitted with explosive warheads and function as one-way precision strike weapons (kamikaze drones). They cost as little as USD 400-2,000 per unit, creating a massive cost asymmetry against expensive armoured vehicles. The Russia-Ukraine War has validated FPV drones as a transformative battlefield technology — Ukrainian FPV drones accounted for over two-thirds of Russian tank kills and carried out nearly 820,000 confirmed strikes in 2025. India's Shaurya Squadrons within the Armoured Corps now deploy indigenous FPV systems as part of integrated drone-armour warfare.
FPV drones represent a paradigm shift in land warfare that is reshaping Indian defence doctrine. For UPSC, this concept is relevant for GS-3 (role of technology in internal security, defence modernisation) and connects to Shaurya Squadrons, iDEX, Drone Shakti scheme, and lessons from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
- 1 Operator uses goggles with live camera feed for manual precision piloting
- 2 Cost USD 400-2,000 per unit versus USD 8-10 million for a tank
- 3 Speed 100-150 km/h; one-way strike (expendable)
- 4 Responsible for over two-thirds of Russian tank kills in the Ukraine War
- 5 Ukrainian FPV strikes in 2025 alone exceeded 820,000
- 6 India's Shaurya Squadrons deploy indigenous FPV systems within armoured regiments
- 7 Each Army operational command empowered to induct approximately 5,000 UAS
The Indian Army's 31 Armoured Division demonstrated FPV drone strikes integrated with T-90S tanks during Exercise Amogh Jwala at Babina in March 2026.