Fulfilling a long cherished dream of the industrially backward northern Kerala to have a strategic manufacturing facility, the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) unit near here, is all set to be inaugurated by Defence Minister A. K. Antony in February.
The HAL unit at Seethangoli, near here, would be inaugurated by the Defence Minister in the first week of February as most of the technical works at the establishment have been completed, a senior HAL official here told the Hindu on Wednesday.
The works of the strategic electronic unit, the first of its kind in the State, at the leased land allotted by the KINFRA was formally launched by Mr. Antony August 28, 2003 under the supervision of the Hyderabad-based HAL’s Avionics unit as the first phase of the unit envisages an estimated cost of Rs. 200 crore, the official said.
So far the building complex for the administrative, production, purchase wing along with security unit, sub-station and canteen have been completed and the production would commence during next financial year, the senior official at the unit said.
The unit would make indigenous design and assembly of components, purchased from abroad, for the armed forces aircraft and copters and state-of-the-art communication equipment, radio altimeter used in radar devices, navigation radar computers. Besides, the unit would manufacture machine computers, display processor, interior navigation system and equipment required for electronic fighting gadgets.
The unit would also handle manufacture of airborne computer an open architecture device, an integral component for the fifth generation and other fighter aircraft, besides testing and maintenance works, he said.
The unit also plans to manufacture equipment required for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), he said.
It presently has 15 engineers, another 50 odd staff members to man the day-to-day functioning.
