Monday 26 September 2011

Upgraded Tejas to take off in 3 years

CHANDIGARH: An upgraded version of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will be ready to take off within three years.

The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), along with the Central Scientific Instruments Organization (CSIO), Chandigarh, is working on the project. Tejas' aircraft technology will put India on the fifth spot after the US, France,Russia and UK.

This was disclosed by additional general manager of HAL, Bangalore, K P Singh, who visited the CSIO laboratory on the occasion of the CSIR foundation day on Monday.

Tejas LCA has a HUD (head up display) which was developed at the CSIO at the start of the year. It has unmatchable brightness on the display board. "We will provide HUD for the upgraded version which will have better range accuracy and will be lighter as compared to the existing one. At present, we have HUD weighing 18kg," said Dr Pawan Kapur, director CSIO.

The improvised version is being devised for the Indian Navy. According to official sources, there is a requirement of over 100 such HUDs for Tejas. "Already, we have provided 36 and 90 more are in the production line," said an official at the CSIO.

Talking about the plan, Singh said, "We have been working with CSIO on LCA and intermediate jet trainer aircraft."

Though HAL is the only supplier of Tejas to the Indian defence forces, catching up with the international competitors has not been easy. "We cannot afford to lose time. There are gaps in the system which slows down the pace of technology. Though red tapism has decreased to some extent, it still exists," said Singh.

The CSIO is working on Mark 2 for intermediate jet trainer aircraft where the weight of the HUD will be 11.8kg.

Source: TOI

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