Tejas: Twists, turns and delays

The home-grown fighter plane combines the best of Russian and French military aircraft

December 21, 2013 02:00 am | Updated December 04, 2021 11:25 pm IST - BANGALORE:

The emergence of the Light Combat Aircraft places India in a select club of nations capable of making their own fighter aircraft, said Defence Research and Development Organisation Director-General Avinash Chander, who is also Secretary, Defence Research and Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister.

“Today, the first fully indigenously designed fighter can compete with any other fighter aircraft in the world,” Mr. Chander told an audience of over 1,000 engineers and scientists from the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), DRDO centres, certifying agency Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC) and manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as the aircraft got its first of the two-level certifications on Friday. The plane perhaps has the best safety record of no accidents, he said.

Mr. Chander said the LCA must be the only aircraft development programme where mid-course, the engine, radar, missiles and sensors were changed. After receiving the Initial Operational Clearance, the IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne, who retires on December 31, said: “I would have gone home very disappointed if the IOC had not come now.”

The IOC document was handed over to the IAF at the old HAL defence airport, which has been restricted to military and small private charter flights since May 2009.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.