The Hindu : Tejas

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, May 06, 2003

Opinion

Opinion - Editorials

Tejas

THE COUNTRY'S PRESTIGIOUS aeronautical project that aims to find a replacement for the aging MiG fleet of the Air Force has been making steady, though slow progress. The two so-called technology demonstrators of the Light Combat Aircraft which adorned the skies over Bangalore on Sunday confirm the fairly significant advances made in the past year in the development of the indigenous fighter aircraft. Christened Tejas (radiance), their flight in formation comes nearly a year after the second of the two technology demonstrators was test flown and more than two and a half years after the first was aerially tested. Dogged by delay, some of which is understandable in the case of such high technology programmes, progress on the LCA project picked up with the lifting of the economic sanctions by the U.S. and the release of some blocked high technology. As the Prime Minister mentioned during the christening ceremony, the country's drive to acquire maximum technological autonomy faces obstacles. The experience with the LCA project as well as other defence modernisation programmes carries several lessons. The most vital one is the imperative of moving toward the goal of self-reliance in key sectors.

That the technology demonstrators still are powered by engines acquired from the U.S. highlights this truth. The time schedule for the indigenous Kaveri engine, which is to replace the U.S. makes, has been slipping regularly. Mr. Vajpayee said the Kaveri engine would be ready soon, but in the absence of a target date and in the context of the LCA's chequered history, doubts will persist over official claims. Any delay in the Kaveri programme can cause a further setback. Once it is fitted, the LCA will become 75 per cent indigenous. It has been designed and developed by a consortium of five aircraft research, design, production and product support organisations and the scientists, technicians and workers of the agencies involved deserve full praise for the progress so far on a project of critical importance to the defence of the country. Whatever scepticism and doubt existed over the LCA project related to the inordinately long gestation period considering that it was placed on the drawing board nearly two decades ago. Criticism also centred on the unrealistic estimates of the resources and time needed to accomplish the task. Compounding these self-created delays was the imposition of the American sanctions that followed the nuclear testing by India in the summer of 1998 which totally skewed the schedule. It is to the credit of the scientists that they have utilised the forced and unavoidable delay to develop a host of systems and components that are essential for all aircraft.

Sunday's show of technological prowess should spur the political leadership to place the required resources at the disposal of the agencies to move towards the ultimate goal of induction of the LCA. The recent series of accidents involving the MiG fleet underscores the dangers of further delay. The IAF has decided to retire some of the ground attack MiG 23s along with the oldest versions of the MiG 21s. When they were acquired, the MiGs were considered the workhorse of the Air Force and as their intended replacement, the LCAs have a pivotal role to play. Agreements have been signed for the manufacture of a small number of LCAs by 2006. The real test will be how soon full-scale induction will take place. Even going by conservative estimates, this may not happen for a decade from now. As frontline, multi-mission tactical aircraft, the indigenously manufactured supersonic fighters will ensure that the country develops the air defence capability that matches its requirements. It is to everyone's credit that a project that was even two years ago being dismissed as a fiasco has acquired steam and may yet come to symbolise the country's capability in indigenous aircraft development.

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