Skip to main content

‘Big achievement’, says DRDO chief after Centre approves LCA Tejas deal

Representative Image

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) chief Dr G Satheesh Reddy said on Wednesday that the ₹48,000 crore defence deal, cleared by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday, would pave way for developing various advanced aircraft systems in India. Clearing the biggest indigenous defence procurement deal, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) approved the purchase of 83 LCA (light combat aircraft) Tejas Mk-1A jets which will take the tally of Tejas variants ordered to 123.

Further terming the procurement deal as a ‘great day for the Indian aeronautical scientific community and industry’, Reddy told news agency ANI, “Getting approval for the order of the largest quantity of aircraft ever is a big achievement and is the culmination of hard work of three decades.” The DRDO chief also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving a go ahead for this project.

The deal will be signed in the coming days with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). It will be a major boost for the Indian Air Force (IAF) as it would strengthen IAF’s fleet of homegrown fighter jet ‘LCA-Tejas’ and the overall combat capability.

The LCA Tejas Mk-1A is a domestically designed, developed and manufactured state of the art modern 4+ generation fighter jet. It will serve as a potent platform to meet the IAF’s operational requirements, the Union defence ministry said. The fighter jet is equipped with critical operational capabilities of Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar, Beyond Visual Range (BVR) Missile, Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite and Air to Air Refuelling (AAR), it added.

The fighter jet is also the “Buy (Indian-Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)” procurement of combat aircraft with an indigenous content of 50 per cent which will progressively reach 60 per cent by the end of the programme, according to ANI.

Earlier, Union defence minister Rajnath Singh had said that the deal would be a game changer for Atmanirbhar (self-reliance) in the country’s defence manufacturing adding that it would considerably expand the current LCA ecosystem and help in creating new employment opportunities.

“The decision taken today will considerably expand the current LCA ecosystem and help in creating new job opportunities. HAL follows a system integrator model in LCA Mk1A program and acts as an umbrella organisation, fostering manufacturing & design capabilities in pvt. industry,” Singh had tweeted.

Labels:
Location: bendre layout, Gubbi cross, DR Bendre Layout, Kothanur, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560077, India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Explained: What is Army Aviation Corps, the youngest Corps of the Indian Army

A look at the Army Aviation Corps’ history and its relevance in modern day battlefields, including in Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism (CI-CT) operations. Representative Image The Army Aviation Corps (AAC), the youngest Corps of the Indian Army, celebrated its 35th Corps Day on November 1. We take a look at the arm that adds an air dimension to the Army’s capabilities, its history, and its relevance in modern day battlefields, including Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism (CI-CT) operations. The roots of Army Aviation Corps The origin of the AAC can be traced back to the raising of the Army Aviation wing of the Royal Air Force in India in 1942, and the subsequent formation of the first Indian Air Observation Post in August 1947. The Air Observation Post units primarily acted as artillery spotters – which are the elements that help the artillery in directing the fire and also giving air support to ground forces. In the wars of 1965 and 1971, the Air Observation Post helicop...
Post a Comment
Read more

Explained: India-US defence deals - BECA, LEMOA & COMCASA

At 2+2 meeting next week, the two countries will look to push intelligence sharing pact BECA . With key deals LEMOA and COMCASA already signed, what does it mean for defence, particularly in light of LAC standoff? India and US have signed the LEMOA in 2016, COMCASA in 2018 and BECA is scheduled for the third 2+2 ministerial meeting (on November 3rd) India and the US are preparing for the third 2+2 ministerial meeting between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh , and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark T Esper in New Delhi on October 26-27. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen E Biegun visited India last week to lay the groundwork for the high-level visits 2+2 in 2018. One of the items on the agenda will be the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) — a pact with deep military implications. In the last two meetings, agreements known as LEMOA and COMCASA were signed; now, with BECA, these have been dubbed the ...
Post a Comment
Read more

India's S-400, Nuke Subs, Rafales pose a serious threat to Pak - FM Qureshi

India’s purchase of Russian S-400 air defence systems, via a deal signed last year and worth $5.43 billion, has unnerved Pakistan, with Foreign Minister Shah Mohammed Qureshi describing the S-400s as destabilising weapon systems which could affect the region's strategic stability. Delivery of the first S-400 system is likely to take place in 2020. Expressing his apprehension about the arms purchase by India, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mohammed Qureshi has called on global powers to be "mindful" of their responsibility in terms of arms supplies to the region. "The introduction of new destabilising weapon systems, such as the S-400 anti-ballistic missile system, could further accentuate challenges to strategic stability. They can encourage a misadventure by an adversary, under a false sense of security," FM Shah Mohammed Qureshi said on Wednesday in Islamabad. Last October, India inked a $5.43 billion defence contract with Russia to purchase of five S-400 air...
Post a Comment
Read more