After years of developing defence goods, the focus of the country’s military R&D establishment is now on pursuing export of a host of Indian products and technologies, said S. Christopher, chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), on Saturday.
Efforts are on to find overseas buyers for homegrown products and technologies such as the light combat fighter (LCA), pilotless aircraft Rustom-1 and Rustom-2/Tapas, the small AEW&CS plane for surveillance, and the Astra and Pinaka missiles, he said at a customary news briefing ahead of the three-day Aero India Seminar, which begins here on Sunday.
As part of this strategy, DRDO will encourage potential overseas customers to fly in the LCA’s trainer version during the Aero India, which begins on February 14. For the first time, the DRDO outdoor display will showcase a real Tejas LCA aircraft.
Export of its products is the DRDO’s key agenda this year, Dr. Christopher said, adding, “We are geared up to do it. We have come to the extent of showcasing our fighter aircraft to the world and [to] demonstrate the LCA to customers. It will be a good return on the investments if we produce them at a reasonable cost and export them. It will also do the nation good.”
As the organisation’s labs move towards upgrades of their products, the early versions could be customised and offered along with technologies to friendly and neighbouring countries. The Astra missile and the Pinaka Mark 1 and 2 versions are strong possibilities.
Already the government has cleared development of eight surveillance planes on the bigger Airbus A330 platform. As such, the government is considering exporting the smaller surveillance plane or the Airborne Early Warning & Control Systems (AEW&CS) built on the Embraer base.
Some progress has already been made in the way of naval torpedoes for Vietnam and sonars for Myanmar. The LCA, the fourth generation fighter that is the world’s lightest, has stirred the interest of a few countries, he said.
‘LCA-Navy will meet its goal’
Recent statements that the Indian Navy has rejected the LCA-Navy fighter aircraft meant for it because it was ‘overweight and unsuitable’ refer only to the first version, which was a technology demonstrator, the heads of the DRDO and the Aeronautical Development Agency said on Saturday.
Cdr. C.D. Balaji (retd), director of ADA, which is the lead developer of a fighter version each for the air force and the Navy, said the December statement attributed to the Chief of Naval Staff should be “restricted to Mark 1, which we know is a heavier platform.”
The Navy’s requirements are being fully addressed in the second version, Mark 2. By mid-2017, ADA is expected to achieve the crucial ‘arrested recovery’ or landing of the fighter on a ship-like platform, and this would signal fruition of the product, Cdr. Balaji and Dr. Christopher said.
About the Navy seeking 57 fighters through a global search or RFI (Request for Information), Cdr. Balaji said it probably pertains to the force’s immediate requirement.
