This is excellent. Particularly for the Navy.
@Bilal Khan (Quwa) , this is an interesting acquisition. Do you think that 10 MQ9B SeaGuardian would be able to fill the requirements for the IN? Consider the background.
IN has been very focused lately on increasing its maritime domain awareness and doing it without fanfare (relative to the airforce). The acquisitions and capability acquired over the last decade have been in
multiples of what they have historically had. The P-8 is a quantum leap over the Soviet technology they historically had access to, not to mention the availability rates of the P-8 are significantly higher than what the Tu's and IL's had. The MH-60R is an upgrade on similar lines. The capability (and numbers/availability) they bring are an order of magnitude higher than what was possessed before.
Their initial plan was to acquire around 18 P-8I's (long-range MPA) and around 10 medium-range MPA. Boeing pitched P-8 lite and some others too pitched in. Ultimately Navy decided to scrap this tiered system as not being cost-effective (another platform vs capability). They have, so far, ordered 12 P-8s. I believe strong budgetary constraints will mean no new orders (though there is an off chance that they order more as the CDS has been pretty wowed by the P-8's. They were one of the primary instruments of surveillance during both the Doklam and Laddakh standoffs).
In light of this, do you think the MQ9B fills the medium-range patrol, a different requirement, or is this a costly experiment?