India’s Light Combat Aircraft program clears another milestone

The final prototype version of the two-seater (trainer) version of Tejas, India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) made its maiden flight setting another milestone for India's overall indigenous LCA program. This was the final prototype of Tejas and will pave the way for the final production of the trainer aircraft.
The aircraft was the 16th Tejas variant and flew as part of the project that has been in the pipeline for over two decades. It is learnt that the PV6 has absorbed all the major design modifications that had been undertaken during the last 2,500-plus flights in the program. The aircraft is equipped with a new communication system, radar, EW sensors apart from new navigation systems for automatic landing.
This flight was the culmination of efforts of various agencies like the ADA, HAL, CEMILAC, DG AQA, Indian Air Force and other DRDO & CSIR organizations. It may be mentioned that this LCA program is the biggest project that Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is working on.
The project conceived in 1983 faced many challenges, largely because of sanctions following India's nuclear test in 1998 and the fact that this is India's first attempt to make a combat aircraft and attain self-sufficiency in designing a world class LCA.
Incidentally, the IAF has ordered 40 LCA Mk 1 aircraft and there are possibilities of inducting five more squadrons of an advanced version of the LCA that is being developed jointly by DRDO and HAL.