Airbus Helicopters and Garuda Technologies Inc. have signed a contract covering the delivery of up to 18 Flexrotor uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) to support civil and parapublic missions. The agreement will allow Garuda to provide Flexrotor-based services to customers through dry and wet lease models for activities including infrastructure inspection, law enforcement, search operations, wildfire monitoring, and disaster relief.
Garuda plans to deploy the Flexrotor systems across sectors such as roads, railways, oil and gas pipelines, and power line inspection. The systems will also be used for operational support in public safety and emergency response missions.
“Our collaboration with Airbus Helicopters to integrate the Flexrotor into our global leasing portfolio marks a significant milestone in our international expansion and investment strategy,” said Agnishwar Jayaprakash, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Garuda. “Having manufactured and sold over 5,000 drones and served more than 500 enterprise and government clients globally, we are now scaling our range of services and upgrading our global product portfolio. With over 1 million flight hours, 30 percent market dominance in India’s agri-drone segment, and a diversified presence across agriculture, defence and industrial sectors, the Flexrotor’s arrival further strengthens our ability to deliver high-endurance, mission-critical unmanned solutions for the most demanding operations worldwide.”
“We are very proud to partner with Garuda as they have selected the Flexrotor to support the development of their global UAS portfolio,” said Olivier Michalon, Executive Vice President, Global Business for Airbus Helicopters. “The Flexrotor offers the best trade off in terms of payload capability, endurance and expeditionary agility thanks to its small footprint. We see a strong interest in Flexrotor from the market both for military and civil operations. The 2025 growth trajectory continues and it is rewarding to witness the Flexrotor increasingly trusted for critical missions worldwide.”
Garuda Technologies Inc., a Delaware-based subsidiary of Garuda Aerospace Limited, is expanding its operations in the North American market. The company’s UAS services are intended to support missions across the energy, public services, agriculture, defence, and industrial sectors.
The Flexrotor is a light tactical UAS designed for long-endurance intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions. The system weighs 25 kg and can operate for more than 12–14 hours in a typical operational configuration while carrying a range of payloads, including electro-optical systems and advanced sensors.
The platform can autonomously launch and recover from land or sea using a required area of 3.7 by 3.7 metres, and can be transported and prepared for flight in less than 30 minutes. Airbus Helicopters manufactures rotary-wing aircraft and unmanned aerial systems for civil and military applications.
