DRDO’s high-power microwave technology is being developed to counter drones by disrupting their electronic systems.
NEW DELHI: India is expanding its work on high-power microwave technology that could disable drones by disrupting or damaging their electronic systems. The latest development is SHIELD, a DRDO-backed programme to create an evaluation system for studying the effects of high-power microwave radiation on electronics.
The initiative comes as India is also developing high-power microwave directed-energy systems for counter-drone applications. However, the SHIELD programme itself is an evaluation and testing effort, not a confirmed operational anti-drone weapon.
What is SHIELD?
SHIELD stands for S-band High-Power Microwave Integrated Evaluation System for Lethality and Damage. DRDO has issued a Request for Proposal under its Technology Development Fund (TDF) scheme, inviting Indian industry to develop the system.
The proposed platform is intended to help researchers study and quantify how high-power microwave radiation affects electronic systems. This could include communications equipment, sensors and control systems.
According to reported details of the RFP, SHIELD is planned around a modular and scalable architecture and is expected to use Gallium Nitride-based solid-state power amplifiers. The system is also reported to require a peak electric field of at least 3 kV/m in the far field.
The proposed system is designed for pulsed operation with flexible duty cycles and includes requirements for thermal management. Its primary purpose is to establish how electronic systems respond to high-power microwave exposure and quantify potential damage.
The information generated through such testing could help DRDO establish vulnerability benchmarks and develop ways to protect Indian military electronics from electromagnetic attacks. A drone-mountable configuration has also been reported as part of the proposed design, although this should not be interpreted as a confirmed operational deployment plan.
DRDO’s existing high-power microwave prototype
SHIELD is separate from a high-power microwave counter-drone system already being developed by DRDO’s Microwave Tube Research and Development Centre (MTRDC) in Bengaluru.
DRDO publicly showcased a model of the ground-based system in January 2026. Reporting based on information from the development team described the system as operating in the S-band, with a reported peak power of around 450 megawatts and a pulse width of 20 nanoseconds. Its beam width is reportedly tuneable.
The system is being developed as a counter-unmanned aircraft system capable of targeting electronic systems on drones. Reports have described tests against small commercial quadcopters at ranges of around one kilometre.
The development team has also previously discussed an eventual range of around five kilometres. However, as of 7 September 2026, there is no publicly available DRDO announcement confirming that the five-kilometre target or previously reported testing milestones have been achieved.
How high-power microwave systems work
A high-power microwave system directs intense electromagnetic energy towards a target. The energy can couple into a drone’s electronic components through antennas, wiring, sensors and other pathways.
Depending on the strength of the exposure and the target’s design, the effects can include disruption, malfunction or permanent damage to electronic components. This can affect flight-control systems, navigation equipment or communications links and potentially cause the drone to lose control.
The approach is generally described as a soft-kill capability because it seeks to neutralise a target without physically destroying it with a missile or projectile.
One potential advantage of HPM systems is their ability to affect electronic systems over an area rather than relying on a conventional kinetic interceptor for every target. Their effectiveness, however, depends on factors including range, beam characteristics, target geometry and the vulnerability of the target’s electronics.
India’s wider HPM push
SHIELD is part of a wider effort involving DRDO and Indian defence companies to develop directed-energy and counter-drone technologies.
In May 2026, Bengaluru-based Tonbo Imaging secured an Indian Navy contract under the ADITI 3.0 innovation framework for the integration and commissioning of a high-power microwave system for naval platforms. Production units are expected to follow if development, validation and acceptance are successful.
Tonbo also markets its WaveStrike high-power microwave system as a directed-energy counter-drone capability. The Navy contract, however, does not mean the system has already been inducted as an operational weapon.
Separately, defence-industry reporting in August 2026 said Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) had completed development of a microwave directed-energy prototype and was preparing for user trials. That timeline has not been independently confirmed through a comparable public BEL announcement, so its reported trial status should be treated cautiously.
Why microwave technology matters against drones
The rapid spread of inexpensive unmanned aircraft has increased the demand for layered counter-UAS systems. Conventional missiles can be disproportionately expensive when used against low-cost drones, creating interest in technologies that can provide reusable or potentially lower-cost ways of neutralising such threats.
High-power microwave systems are one part of that emerging technology mix. Unlike high-energy lasers, which generally concentrate energy on a target, HPM systems can potentially affect multiple electronics-dependent targets within their effective beam coverage.
The technology also has a defensive application. Testing how electronics respond to high-power microwave exposure can help India identify vulnerabilities in its own radars, communications equipment, aircraft and other military platforms and develop appropriate protection measures.
What comes next
The next stage for SHIELD will depend on the industry response to DRDO’s RFP and the eventual development and testing of the evaluation system.
For India’s HPM counter-drone programmes, further testing will be important to establish range, reliability and effectiveness against increasingly sophisticated unmanned systems. Industry-led programmes involving companies such as Tonbo Imaging and BEL could provide additional pathways towards user evaluation.
For now, the public evidence points to an expanding Indian research and development effort rather than a fully deployed microwave drone shield. SHIELD is intended to provide the testing infrastructure needed to better understand the effects of high-power microwaves, while separate DRDO and industry programmes are working towards actual counter-drone applications.
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