Garuda Aerospace and Naini Aerospace engineering limited (NAeL), a wholly owned subsidiary of HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence has signed a joint development partnership. 

The joint partnership will enable Garuda to manufacture advanced precision drones on Indian soil for various applications. The drones will be able to carry a payload of around 25 kilograms.

Garuda Aerospace recently partnered with BEML at Aero India for drone manufacturing at their Mysore facility and initiated a massive indigenization campaign. The company has also collaborated with 120 local suppliers with the objective of reducing reliance on foreign imports of drone parts, components, and UAV subsystems.

Naini Aerospace Engineering Limited (NAeL) was incorporated in December 2016 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). It has a vision of sustainable manufacturing operations in the Aerospace and Aviation Sector and is situated in the Naini industrial area of Prayagraj developed by UP State Industrial Development Corporation.

Speaking on the development, Agnishwar Jayaprakash, Founder and CEO, of Garuda Aerospace said, "Our Prime Minister's vision of achieving the milestone of one lakh Made in India drones by 2024 is well on track. Our partnership with Naini Aerospace engineering limited (NAeL) (a wholly owned subsidiary of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) is a natural next step for us. Our Drone Yatra has also been a grand success and we have pre-booked over 7000 drones at Rs. 4.5 lakhs each. Partnerships with Government PSUs are critical given the knowledge and experience they possess to scale up production. We will continue to stay focused, and partner with industry leaders that will help us achieve our PM’s vision.”
 
Speaking on the partnership, R.R. Thakur, Chief Executive Officer, of Naini Aerospace engineering limited (NAeL) added, "We are very excited to be working along with Garuda Aerospace on the rapidly evolving drone sector. Our experience with the production of Helicopter structures was launched on 11th July 2018 in a newly constructed Aero-structure hangar equipped with State of Art facilities.