With
industry stepping up participation by contributing major structures to the
indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), HAL chairman T Suvarna Raju is confident the government can
order well beyond 123 jets. In an interview to ET’s Manu Pubby, Raju said major
milestones have been achieved on the LCA and chopper projects.
The LVC flight Republic Day was a show of confidence. Has the
project truly taken off?
The LCA was the first single engine fighter to
fly at the parade in 29 years. It shows the confidence of the customer. The
fighter is no longer a prototype but is being flown by the Air Force. Just a
few days back, the plane was flown with a refueling probe. This was the
improvement we had promised on the aircraft. I understand that the flight went
off well and no difference was felt in the performance of the plane and it
proves the design is good. We’ll now do a wet trial to go after the refueler
and fill the fighter up. This will be a major milestone. We will double the
range of the fighter.
Will LCA be ordered in larger numbers and what is the contribution
of the industry to the project?
We’re looking at a performance-based, time-wise
plan to integrate a new AESA radar and electronic warfare suite on the fighter
by 2018. If we keep up to our promise, I don’t think the order will stop at the
current 123. Defence ministry is planning a single engine fighter to be made in
India with the industry but even after that, there’s a gap of 200 odd fighters
that we can make good. We have planned our manufacturing capability at 18-20
fighters a year and have started subcontracting – the wing to L&T and
central fuselage to Vem Technologies. If they start delivering, it’ll enhance
our capability.
What’s the status of fifth gen fighter project with Russia?
The cost negotiation committee has concluded
discussions and the matter is to be put up before the government. We expect
that within the next few months, there’ll be a positive way forward on this
project.
The
light utility helicopter (LUH) is in high demand. How have recent flight trials
been?
LUH
will be flying at Aero India show in Bangalore as part of our rotary wing
formation. The chopper is flying well and we reached a speed of 200 km/h. If
the pace is continued, we’re confident of getting the basic platform clearance
for the chopper by the end of 2017. It is a very aggressive plan but we are
confident.
What is the future of the Hawk programme, including the variant
you are planning with BAE for exports?
We have tied up with BAE for two things – one is
for the internal Hawk order for which we are upgrading the planes with
unprecedented software that will add virtual training to the planes. This will
place trainee pilots as close to the real situation as possible. We are also
making a more advanced version of the Hawk that will have a modified wing for
high speed maneuverability and engine with more power. This we are looking
for the external market. The Air Force did not express keenness for the project
when we started but once we start proving the capabilities, even the internal
market could get interested.
Source :- Economic Times
0 Comments