New Delhi: Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has awarded a significant ₹640 crore contract to Gurugram-based Lotus Advanced Technologies for the supply of advanced AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) maritime patrol radars designed for integration onto the Indian Navy’s Dornier Do-228 maritime surveillance aircraft.
The contract, announced in mid-December 2025, represents a strategic partnership between the defence contractor and Israel’s IAI-Elta Systems Ltd, marking an important milestone in India’s efforts to strengthen indigenous defence manufacturing and enhance maritime domain awareness across its vast exclusive economic zone.
Lotus Advanced Technologies, a growing micro, small and medium enterprise founded in 2005 and headquartered in Gurugram, Haryana, has established itself as a supplier of advanced aerospace and defence systems through strategic international partnerships.
The company operates state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Uttar Pradesh and holds certifications from HAL, the Defence Quality Assurance Authority (DGAQA), and the aerospace quality standard AS 9100 Rev D, positioning it as a credible defence contractor within India’s emerging private sector manufacturing base.
This contract represents the culmination of the company’s partnership strategy with world-leading Israeli defence technology providers, reflecting the broader deepening of India-Israel defence cooperation across multiple platforms and systems.
The contract will see Lotus Advanced Technologies manufacturing and integrating the C-Catcher ELM-2025 maritime patrol radar system, developed by IAI-Elta Systems Ltd, onto Dornier Do-228 aircraft operated by the Indian Navy.
The Dornier Do-228 is a lightweight, twin-engine turboprop aircraft that has served as the workhorse of India’s maritime surveillance operations for decades. The aircraft, manufactured by HAL under licence from Swiss aerospace company RUAG, operates in two primary variants—the 228-100 and 228-200 series—and has proven its versatility across multiple mission profiles including maritime patrol, search and rescue, coastal surveillance, and environmental monitoring.
The integration of advanced AESA radar technology onto these platforms will substantially elevate their operational capabilities and extend their relevance within the Indian Navy’s maritime surveillance hierarchy.
The C-Catcher ELM-2025 radar represents the latest generation of airborne maritime surveillance systems developed by IAI-Elta, leveraging over three decades of operational experience with its predecessor, the ELM-2022 system, which remains the world’s most widely deployed maritime surveillance radar with more than 250 installations across 25 nations.
The new radar family builds upon this proven foundation by incorporating cutting-edge AESA technology utilising Gallium Nitride (GaN) solid-state components, electronic scanning, advanced signal processing algorithms, and sophisticated software-defined architecture. The radar operates in the X-band frequency spectrum, enabling all-weather and all-visibility performance by effectively penetrating clouds, rain, fog, smoke, and other environmental obscurants that would degrade conventional radar systems.
The operational capabilities of the C-Catcher radar are comprehensive and multifaceted, designed to address the full spectrum of maritime surveillance and reconnaissance missions undertaken by modern naval and coastguard forces. The system offers a 360-degree detection radius extending to approximately 200 nautical miles, enabling detection, tracking, and classification of multiple targets simultaneously whilst conducting three-dimensional scanning across range, altitude, and directional parameters.
In maritime mode, the radar excels at detecting even small vessels in challenging sea states through the use of Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) and Range Signature (RS) processing modes, whilst maintaining the ability to operate effectively close to the shoreline by effectively rejecting land clutter. The radar’s search and rescue transponder (SART) detection capability enhances its utility for humanitarian operations, whilst its anti-submarine warfare modes enable detection and classification of submarines and periscopes surfacing or snorkelling.
Beyond its maritime surveillance specialisation, the C-Catcher radar incorporates sophisticated ground surveillance capabilities through Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) modes operating in both Strip and Spot imaging configurations, and Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI) modes enabling detection and tracking of moving ground targets across wide geographical areas.
The system’s air-to-air surveillance capability, incorporating Track-While-Scan functionality and integration with Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) and Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) systems, provides comprehensive airspace situational awareness. The radar’s ability to seamlessly interleave between multiple operational modes—allowing simultaneous maritime, ground, and air surveillance—represents a significant technological advancement over conventional mechanically scanned radar systems, enabling operators to conduct multi-domain surveillance missions without the time penalties associated with manual mode switching.
The integration of the C-Catcher radar onto the Dornier Do-228 platform is expected to substantially enhance the Indian Navy’s and Coast Guard’s maritime domain awareness capabilities across the nation’s extensive maritime jurisdiction. India’s exclusive economic zone encompasses approximately 2.3 million square kilometres, stretching 200 nautical miles from the continental baseline, and represents a critical area for resource exploitation, maritime trade, and national security.
This vast maritime expanse has historically posed significant surveillance and monitoring challenges given the dispersed nature of naval and coastguard assets. The radar-equipped Dornier aircraft, operating from multiple coastal bases, will provide persistent surveillance capability across strategic maritime zones, enabling detection of surface vessels engaged in illegal fishing, maritime smuggling, piracy, and other unlawful activities that represent ongoing challenges to India’s maritime security.
The timing of the contract announcement in mid-December 2025 coincides with elevated focus on defence acquisition and modernisation within the Indian defence establishment, driven by ongoing geopolitical tensions and the Government of India’s stated commitment to accelerating defence sector transformation.
(With Agency Inputs)
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