HAL Tejas MK-1
“The grant of final operational clearance to Tejas is a landmark day for India’s aeronautical engineers, scientists, the Indian Air Force, the defense industry and allied businesses.”, speaking at the 2019 biennial air show, DRDO Chairman and Defence R&D Secretary, G. Satheesh Reddy said.
The Tejas or ‘radiance’, is India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) together with its variants, is the smallest and lightest Multi-Role Supersonic Fighter Aircraft of its class. This single engine, Compound-Delta-Wing, Tailless Aircraft is designed and developed by Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited ( HAL) as the principal partner along with DRDO, CSIR, BEL, DGAQA, IAF & IN to meet diverse needs of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Navy (IN).
The Tejas is the smallest lightweight, multi-role, single-engine tactical fighter aircraft in the world and is being developed in single-seat fighter and twin seat trainer. It is a single-engine multi-role fighter which features a tailless, compound delta wing and is designed with “relaxed static stability” for enhanced maneuverability.
Originally intended to serve as an air superiority aircraft with a secondary ground-attack role, its flexibility permits a variety of guided air-to-surface and anti-shipping weapons to be integrated for multi-role and multi-mission capabilities.The tailless, compound-delta platform is designed to be small and lightweight. It was built in an attempt to to replace India’s ageing MiG-21 fighters, which had been the mainstay of the IAF since the 1970s.
On September 2018, Tejas successfully completed the trials for mid air refueling feat which is one of the key items required for the aircraft to obtain clearance.
On 20 February 2019, during the biennial air show Held in Bangalore, the Final Operational Clearance was finally formally awarded to Tejas. In the show, the Tejas flew, both as part of the flypast and special performance. The organizers have scheduled LCA Navy version for a flying display during the show.
Specifications
Introduction → 2010
Unit Cost → ₹162 crore (US $23 million)
Produced in → India
Number Built (As of Feb 2019) → 28
Operators → India
Length → 13.20 m
Wingspan → 8.20 m
Height → 4.40 m
Empty weight → 6560 kg
Maximum take-off capacity → 9800 kg
Maximum speed → 2,205 km/h
Combat Radius → 500 km
Service ceiling → 50,000 ft
Written by → Anjana Ranjan
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