Copyright knnindia
New Delhi, Oct 31 (KNN) Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has announced a strategic partnership with US-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) to manufacture Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) in India. The unmanned aircraft systems will be fully produced within the country, aligning with the government’s Make in India initiative. Under the collaboration, L&T will participate in the Ministry of Defence’s upcoming “87 Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems” programme as the prime bidder, with General Atomics serving as its technology partner. GA-ASI’s MQ-series RPAS are globally recognised for their extensive use in intelligence, surveillance, and strike operations, having logged millions of flight hours worldwide. L&T said the partnership leverages its engineering expertise, precision manufacturing, and system integration strengths in defence and aerospace. Combined with the technology transfer from GA-ASI, this collaboration aims to meet the indigenous content requirements of the programme and boost India’s self-reliance in advanced defence systems. S. N. Subrahmanyan, Chairman and Managing Director of L&T, said, “This partnership offers India a unique opportunity to manufacture state-of-the-art unmanned platforms indigenously. We are proud to join hands with GA-ASI, a global leader in this domain, and are confident this alliance will strengthen India’s defence capabilities.” Meanwhile, L&T reported strong financial results for the September quarter (Q2 FY26). The company’s consolidated net profit rose 16 per cent to Rs 3,926 crore, compared with Rs 3,395 crore in the same period last year. Revenue grew 10.4 per cent year-on-year to Rs 67,984 crore, up from Rs 61,555 crore in Q2 FY25. However, its EBITDA margin declined slightly to 10 per cent from 10.3 per cent, primarily due to lower profitability in its IT and technology services segment.
