3-Oct-2022: Indigenously Designed and Developed Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) inducted into Indian Air Force

In a big boost to AatmaNirbharata in Defence, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh today presided over the formal induction of Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in Jodhpur. Naming LCH as “Prachanda”, Raksha Mantri said that its induction comes during the Amrit kal when the Nation is celebrating Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and a pointer to the future when IAF will be the top most force in the world, as also making the country fully AtmaNirbhar in Defence production requirements. Raksha Mantri also took a sortie onboard the LCH shortly after its induction into IAF.

Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhary, Air Marshal Vikram Singh Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South Western Air Command, Chairman and Managing Director of HAL Shri C.B. Anandakrishnan, senior officials of Ministry of Defence, IAF and local dignitaries were present on the occasion.

In his address, Shri Rajnath Singh praised role of IAF in meeting internal as well as external threats to the country since independence. He added that the induction of LCH, with its tremendous power and versatility, not only enhances the combat capabilities of IAF but is also a big step towards self-reliance in defense production, as envisioned by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. The trust reposed and support extended by the IAF towards indigenous design & development is evident through the examples such as Marut, Light Combat Aircraft, Akash missile system, Advanced Light Helicopter and the Light Combat Helicopter. “The induction of LCH underlines the fact that just as the country trusts the Indian Air Force, the IAF equally trusts the indigenous equipment,” he added.

Raksha Mantri said that adequate attention was not paid to the development of indigenous attack helicopters for a long time after independence. However, since the Kargil War in 1999, the need for LCH was felt more and today’s LCH was a result of two decades of R&D and indigenous efforts in that direction. Shri Rajnath Singh added that LCH was flying not only on the strength of its rotors, engines and blades, but also on the strength of penance, patience, dedication and patriotism of many scientists, engineers and others.

Raksha Mantri noted that the LCH meets the requirements of modern warfare and necessary quality parameters under varied conditions of operations. It is capable of self-protection, of carrying a wide variety of ammunition, and delivering it to the field quickly. This versatile helicopter perfectly meets the needs of our armed forces in various terrains and as such LCH is an ideal platform for both our Army and Air Force, he added.

Raksha Mantri said that the recent conflicts in Ukraine and elsewhere showed us that heavy weapon systems and platforms, which do not allow for rapid movement in the battlefield, are sometimes vulnerable and become easy targets for the enemy. Therefore, the need of the hour is to move towards the development of those equipment and platforms, which are mobile, have ease of movement, are more flexible, and at the same time meet the requirements of the armed forces. In this context, LCH has been developed with an unprecedented balance of all these features and HAL should be congratulated for this, Raksha Mantri said.

Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhary, Chief of Air Staff said on the occasion that induction of LCH adds unique capability to the IAF’s combat potential. Versatility and offensive potential of the LCH is at par or better than most attack helicopters operating globally. Selection of the personnel in the 143-helicopter unit which will man the LCH have been made based on professional competence so as to ensure operationalisation of the unit at the earliest, he added.

The LCH is the first indigenous Multi-Role Combat Helicopter designed and manufactured by HAL. It has potent ground attack and aerial combat capability. Inducted in IAF’s newly raised No. 143 Helicopter Unit, it is a testimony to India’s growing prowess in indigenous design, development & manufacturing and a significant milestone in the path towards ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in Defence. The helicopter possesses modern stealth characteristics, robust armour protection and formidable night attack capability. Onboard advanced navigation system, guns tailored for close combat and potent air to air missiles make the LCH especially suited for the modern battlefield. Capable of operating from high altitude terrain and carrying out precision strike at high altitude targets, the helicopter is a formidable addition to IAF’s arsenal.

5-Aug-2022: Tejas Fighter Aircraft

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a Defence PSU under the Ministry of Defence responded to a Request for Information (RFI) received from Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), Malaysia in February, 2019 for LCA class aircraft. Subsequently, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited responded in October, 2021 to Request for Proposal (RFP) issued against tender released by Royal Malaysian Air Force, Malaysia for 18 no's of Fighter Lead In Trainer – Light Combat Aircraft (FLIT – LCA) and HAL offered LCA Tejas twin seater variant. Other countries which have evinced interest in LCA aircraft are: Argentina, Australia, Egypt, USA, Indonesia, and Philippines.

The Government has taken several policy initiatives in the past few years and brought in reforms to encourage indigenous design, development and manufacture of defence equipment in the country, thereby expanding their production. These initiatives, inter-alia, include:

• According priority to procurement of capital items from domestic sources under Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP)-2020.
• The announcement of 18 major defence platforms for industry led design & development in March, 2022.
• Notification of three ‘Positive Indigenisation Lists’ of total 310 items of Services and two ‘Positive Indigenisation Lists’ of total 2958 items of the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), for which there would be an embargo on the import beyond the timelines indicated against them.
• Simplification of Industrial licensing process with longer validity period.
• Liberalisation of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy allowing 74% FDI under automatic route.
• Simplification of Make Procedure.
• Launch of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) scheme involving start-ups & Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
• Implementation of Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order 2017.
• Launch of an indigenisation portal namely SRIJAN to facilitate indigenisation by Indian Industry including MSMEs.
• Reforms in Offset policy with thrust on attracting investment and Transfer of Technology for Defence manufacturing by assigning higher multipliers.
• Establishment of two Defence Industrial Corridors, one each in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
• Opening up of Defence Research & Development (R&D) for industry, start-ups and academia with 25 percent of defence R&D budget earmarked to promote development of defence technology in the country; and
• Progressive increase in allocation of Defence Budget of military modernisation for procurement from domestic sources, etc.

20-Dec-2021: MIG-21 Aircraft

Tejas is not being inducted as a replacement of MIG-21 fighter aircraft, but as a part of modernisation of IAF. Amount spent so far on the manufacture of 24 LCA Tejas delivered till 30.09.2021 is Rs 6,653 crore. Considering the contract with HAL by IAF, a total of 123 Tejas fighter aircraft are to be manufactured. Further production depends upon requirement for Indian Defence Services/export to customers.

3-Feb-2021: Rs. 48,000 Crore Contract for 83 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas handed over to HAL at the Inaugural Ceremony of Aero India 2021

Today at Inaugural Ceremony of Aero India 2021, in the presence of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh, the Contract for 83 Light Combat Aircraft Tejas was handed over to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The Cabinet Committee on Security under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had approved procurement of 73 LCA Tejas Mk-1A fighter aircrafts and 10 LCA Tejas Mk-1 Trainer aircrafts at a cost of Rs. 45,696 Cr along with Design & Development and Infrastructure sanctions worth Rs. 1,202 Cr on 13th January, 2021. The contract is valued at close to Rs. 48,000 crores.

This is the largest ever Defence contract for indigenous manufacture till date. This significant step provides great impetus to indigenous fighter aircraft capability of the nation. A stellar display of Tejas platform was made today in Aero India 2021 in the presence of large number of international and national participants.

The deliveries of all 83 aircraft shall be completed in 8 years from now. HAL will be delivering the first 3 aircraft in the 3rd year and 16 aircrafts per year for subsequent 5 years. On 2nd February Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated the second production facility (Plant II) to augment the production capacity and ensure timely supply of aircraft to IAF. The induction of Light Combat Aircraft Tejas Mk-1A in Indian Air Force will enhance operational capabilities and improve the aircraft strength.

Light Combat Aircraft Mk-1A variant is an indigenously designed, developed and manufactured state of the art modern 4+ generation fighter aircraft. This aircraft 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) would be a potent platform to meet the operational requirements of Indian Air Force. It is the first “Buy (Indian-Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured)” category procurement of combat aircrafts with an indigenous content of 50% which will progressively reach 60% by the end of the programme and about 250 out of 344 systems fitted in the aircraft will be indigenous.

Responding to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s clarion call for Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, India is continuously growing in its power to indigenously design, develop and manufacture advanced cutting edge technologies and systems in the Defence Sector. The manufacturing of Light Combat Aircraft by HAL will give a further push to Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative and boost indigenization of defence production and the defence industry in the country. About 500 Indian companies including MSMEs in the design and manufacturing sectors will be working with HAL in this procurement. Some of these companies have displayed their systems at Aero India 2021. Today, the nation is self-reliant in most of the Military Fighter Aircraft Contemporary technologies and this has been possible largely due to Tejas Programme. The programme would act as a catalyst for transforming the Indian aerospace manufacturing ecosystem into a vibrant Aatmanirbhar-self-sustaining ecosystem.

27-May-2020: Tejas FOC aircraft handed over to the IAF

The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday inducted Tejas Mk-1 FOC aircraft into the recently resurrected No 18 Sqn, the “Flying Bullets” at Air Force Station Sulur, marking yet another important step towards enhancing the operational capability of the Air Force. The Squadron is the first in the IAF to induct this platform. This is also an important milestone in the country’s indigenous fighter aircraft program and a significant boost to the ‘Make In India’ initiative. Tejas Mk-1 FOC is a single engine, light weight, highly agile, all weather multi role fighter aircraft capable of air-to-air refueling thus making it a truly versatile platform.

The Squadron was operationalised by Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria. Air Officer Commanding in Chief of the Southern Air Command, Air Marshal Amit Tiwari, and the Commodore Commandant of 18 Sqn, Air Marshal TD Joseph, Mr. R Madhavan CMD HAL, Dr Girish S Deodhare, PGD (CA) and Director, Aeronautical Development Agency were also present during the ceremony. While addressing the personnel at AF Station Sulur, the CAS congratulated them and lauded the efforts put in by Southern Air Command and AF Station Sulur towards the induction of the new airborne platform. He complimented Chairman HAL, ADA, DRDO labs, DPSUs, MSMEs and all agencies involved in the production of LCA for achievement of this historic milestone.

The occasion was marked by the presentation of aircraft documents of the Tejas FOC version by the HAL CMD to the CAS. The CAS further handed these over to the Commanding Officer of 18 Squadron Group Captain Manish Tolani, along with the ceremonial keys to the unit. The event commenced with a fly past comprising of a helicopter formation of the Mi 17 V5 and the ALH, An-32 transport aircraft and Tejas Mk-1 fighters.

No 18 Sqn was raised at Ambala on 15 Apr 1965 with the Folland Gnat Aircraft. Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon, the only Param Vir Chakra recipient of the Indian Air Force was a part of the Squadron during the 1971 Indo-Pak War. The Squadron also has the unique distinction of having operated two HAL made aircraft, the Tejas and the Ajeet which it also operated from the same station. Over the years it also operated MiG-27 ML aircraft from various bases across the country. The Squadron was number plated in Apr 2016. The Squadron falls under the operational control of Southern Air Command which is responsible for integrating the Squadron into the IAF Concept of Operations.