LEVCON moves very much like canard. so the next step is canard to increase the vortex lift.
LCA Tejas Mk1 & Mk1A - News and discussions
- Thread starter Ashwin
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SP 8 (LA-5008) successfully flew for the first time today taking off at 1542 hrs from HAL Airport in Bengaluru and landing back at 1615 hrs. SP-8 flew for 33 mins with the experienced Gp. Capt. KK Venugopal (Retd) on the controls.
This is now the 8th MK1 IOC2 configure aircraft to take to skies.
This is now the 8th MK1 IOC2 configure aircraft to take to skies.
Greats news!!! Unlike SP-5 , SP-8 did successful first flight even after coming out of the new line. HAL is expected to fly SP-9 by March 31 thats 2 LCA in one month, keep it rolling baby!!!
12 LCA MK1 expected in FY 2018-19, 16 in 2019-20. So MK1A should be ready by 2021 for production, otherwise it will be a major embarrassment for HAL if the production line is kept idle.
12 LCA MK1 expected in FY 2018-19, 16 in 2019-20. So MK1A should be ready by 2021 for production, otherwise it will be a major embarrassment for HAL if the production line is kept idle.
Greats news!!! Unlike SP-5 , SP-8 did successful first flight even after coming out of the new line. HAL is expected to fly SP-9 by March 31 thats 2 LCA in one month, keep it rolling baby!!!
12 LCA MK1 expected in FY 2018-19, 16 in 2019-20. So MK1A should be ready by 2021 for production, otherwise it will be a major embarrassment for HAL if the production line is kept idle.
You may have to push that date by 1 year for Mk1A.
SP-8 is surely a great sight and shows that the issues with SP-5 have been addressed and production is coming along nicely now but there is a concern.
Rough calulations:
Delivered
FY2017-18 8/9
Expected:
FY 2018-19 12
FY 2019-20 16
--------------------
37
So by the middle of FY2020-21 all 40 MK.1 will be delivered but the MK.1A will only be ready for production come late 2021/2022 (at best). Unless interim orders are placed (soon) for more MK.1s the LCA production line is going to be idle for quite a number of months (if not over a year) just as they have hit their stride.
IAF should at least order another SQN of MK.1 just to cover any delays that may occur with MK.1A and given that MK.1 can be converted to 1A at a later date there isn't too much of a risk in this move and it will help them boost their SQN strength (and we know how they like to complain about that) even further.
Rough calulations:
Delivered
FY2017-18 8/9
Expected:
FY 2018-19 12
FY 2019-20 16
--------------------
37
So by the middle of FY2020-21 all 40 MK.1 will be delivered but the MK.1A will only be ready for production come late 2021/2022 (at best). Unless interim orders are placed (soon) for more MK.1s the LCA production line is going to be idle for quite a number of months (if not over a year) just as they have hit their stride.
IAF should at least order another SQN of MK.1 just to cover any delays that may occur with MK.1A and given that MK.1 can be converted to 1A at a later date there isn't too much of a risk in this move and it will help them boost their SQN strength (and we know how they like to complain about that) even further.
The SPs are a definite step up in fit and finish, they look so sleek.
SP-8
anybody familiar with aerodynamics??? i have a question....
why there is no bubble canopy for tejas? i hate these old styled canopy, resembles much like world war 2 and soviet era....
why there is no bubble canopy for tejas? i hate these old styled canopy, resembles much like world war 2 and soviet era....
Ironically it was in WW2 that the first bubble canopies were seen:
Most modern jets don't have them:
With less and less perceived need to be optimised for close range ACM I don't think bubble canopies are going to be seen that often going foreward.
DRDO asks for LCA Mk2 funding
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has asked the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence for additional funds to develop the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk2.
In submissions made to the committee, Secretary, Defence Research and Development and Chairman, DRDO, S. Christopher mentioned a request of INR 800 crore for work on the LCA Mk2, also, saying the Indian Air Force (IAF) had committed itself to 201 LCA Mk2, in addition to the 123 LCA Mk1/1A or order or being contemplated at the moment. The naval LCA was also intended to be based on the LCA Mk2.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence cited his remarks in a report released on Tuesday, in which he was quoted as saying, “We have LCA Programme which is coming under grants-in-aid which requires funding. As of now, we have got the orders for about 123 aircraft and also Air Force is committed to take another 201 aircraft which means, Mark-II to be designed and developed, we are in the half way through. There are some expenditures involved. We request another Rs.800 Crore under grants-in-aid. If it could be provided we will be happy.”
Christopher had made a reference to an IAF commitment for 201 LCA Mk2 earlier this month, as well. The Indian Express quoted him as saying in Ahmedabad, “In addition to that (123 LCA Mk1/1A order), the air force has given in writing another 201 aircraft, which is the next version, that we call as Mark-II. We are working on it and by 2022 it will be flying.”
These remarks come during a period of confusion about the intention of the defence ministry and IAF with respect to acquisition of fighter aircraft. After the withdrawal of the IAF tender for 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) in 2015 and the order for 36 Rafale fighter aircraft, the defence ministry under Manohar Parrikar announced its intention to hold a competition for a Make in India single-engine fighter aircraft.
Fighters were also listed as one of four domestic manufacturing priorities in Chapter 07 of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) on strategic partnerships, released last year.
More recently, reports have emerged suggesting that the defence ministry under Nirmala Sitharaman might be open to throwing the competition open to all manufacturers and fighters, to include twin-engine aircraft, as well.
At the same time, while there is talk of IAF interest in the U.S. fifth generation F-35, the French have also urged India towards a repeat government-to-government order for Rafale fighters.
The IAF’s current order numbers for the LCA:
The LCA Mk2 requires a more powerful engine than the the current GE F404 powering the LCA Mk1. The GE F414 had been selected for the LCA Mk2. However, there is now speculation a revived indigenous Kaveri engine could power the aircraft with French assistance. This is not the first time such an idea has been considered.
Either way, any engine upgrade would likely require significant changes to the existing airframe. In recent years, both the IAF and the navy had dropped the idea of pursuing an LCA Mk2 model from active consideration.
On its part, the committee recommended the extra cash for the LCA Mk2, but said, “The Committee, while examining the Demands for Grants, discovered that delays in completion of projects is a part and parcel of DRDOs functioning. For instance, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) was supposed to be completed in 2008 but the revised date of completion is June, 2019. In the case of Aero engine, Kaveri, the original date of completion was 1996 but was revised to December, 2009. Further revision of the completion schedule continues to be under process. Similar is the case with LCA-Navy, Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) System, Air to Air Missile system-Astra, Long Range Surface to Air Missile etc. to name a few.”
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has asked the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence for additional funds to develop the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk2.
In submissions made to the committee, Secretary, Defence Research and Development and Chairman, DRDO, S. Christopher mentioned a request of INR 800 crore for work on the LCA Mk2, also, saying the Indian Air Force (IAF) had committed itself to 201 LCA Mk2, in addition to the 123 LCA Mk1/1A or order or being contemplated at the moment. The naval LCA was also intended to be based on the LCA Mk2.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence cited his remarks in a report released on Tuesday, in which he was quoted as saying, “We have LCA Programme which is coming under grants-in-aid which requires funding. As of now, we have got the orders for about 123 aircraft and also Air Force is committed to take another 201 aircraft which means, Mark-II to be designed and developed, we are in the half way through. There are some expenditures involved. We request another Rs.800 Crore under grants-in-aid. If it could be provided we will be happy.”
Christopher had made a reference to an IAF commitment for 201 LCA Mk2 earlier this month, as well. The Indian Express quoted him as saying in Ahmedabad, “In addition to that (123 LCA Mk1/1A order), the air force has given in writing another 201 aircraft, which is the next version, that we call as Mark-II. We are working on it and by 2022 it will be flying.”
These remarks come during a period of confusion about the intention of the defence ministry and IAF with respect to acquisition of fighter aircraft. After the withdrawal of the IAF tender for 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) in 2015 and the order for 36 Rafale fighter aircraft, the defence ministry under Manohar Parrikar announced its intention to hold a competition for a Make in India single-engine fighter aircraft.
Fighters were also listed as one of four domestic manufacturing priorities in Chapter 07 of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) on strategic partnerships, released last year.
More recently, reports have emerged suggesting that the defence ministry under Nirmala Sitharaman might be open to throwing the competition open to all manufacturers and fighters, to include twin-engine aircraft, as well.
At the same time, while there is talk of IAF interest in the U.S. fifth generation F-35, the French have also urged India towards a repeat government-to-government order for Rafale fighters.
The IAF’s current order numbers for the LCA:
- LCA Mk1 (IOC standard): 20
- LCA Mk1 (FOC standard): 20
- LCA Mk1A: 83
- Digital RWR and External SPJ Pod
- Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar
- Combined Interrogator and Transponder (CIT)
- ASRAM – Close Combat Missile
- Beyond Visual Range (BVR) Missile
The LCA Mk2 requires a more powerful engine than the the current GE F404 powering the LCA Mk1. The GE F414 had been selected for the LCA Mk2. However, there is now speculation a revived indigenous Kaveri engine could power the aircraft with French assistance. This is not the first time such an idea has been considered.
Either way, any engine upgrade would likely require significant changes to the existing airframe. In recent years, both the IAF and the navy had dropped the idea of pursuing an LCA Mk2 model from active consideration.
On its part, the committee recommended the extra cash for the LCA Mk2, but said, “The Committee, while examining the Demands for Grants, discovered that delays in completion of projects is a part and parcel of DRDOs functioning. For instance, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) was supposed to be completed in 2008 but the revised date of completion is June, 2019. In the case of Aero engine, Kaveri, the original date of completion was 1996 but was revised to December, 2009. Further revision of the completion schedule continues to be under process. Similar is the case with LCA-Navy, Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) System, Air to Air Missile system-Astra, Long Range Surface to Air Missile etc. to name a few.”
Honestly...
A) This Statement/Document. looks like a preemptive strike to cover one's rear ends! ie. JUST IN CASE , if the programs for the MK1A/MK2 are late to deliver - THIS statement/document will help ADA/HAL to tell the world - THE REASON is that - the funds were given LATE
B) With no concrete details or information - stating that the MK1A design/equipment being frozen and prototyping has being - im very skeptical are the timeline being achieved - on the other hand- as per reports we should see the first frame in 2019 - we will just have to wait
IAF commits to 324 Tejas fighters, provided a good Mark-II jet is delivered
NEW DELHI: After years of being critical of the Tejas fighter, which is still not combat-ready 35 years after the light combat aircraft project was first approved by the government, the IAF has now agreed to induct 324 of the indigenous jets in the long-term to make up for its fast-depleting number of fighter squadrons.
IAF has “firmly committed” to 123 Tejas jets at present, which will come at a cost of over Rs 75,000 crore if both developmental and production costs are taken into account. But it wants the next 201 Tejas Mark-II jets to be “entirely new fighters” with much better avionics and radars, enhanced fuel and weapons carrying capacity, and more powerful engines, say top sources.
The existing single-engine Tejas has limited “endurance” of just an hour, with a “radius of action” of only 350-400-km, and weapon-carrying capacity of 3-tonne. Other single-engine fighters like Swedish Gripen-E and American F-16 have roughly double the weapon-carrying capacity and triple the endurance.
But IAF, down to just 31 fighter squadrons (18 jets in each) when at least 42 are required to tackle the “collusive threat” from China and Pakistan, realises inducting expensive foreign fighters “in large numbers” is simply not an option.
The 36 Rafale jets, ordered from France in September 2016, for instance, have cost India Rs 59,000 crore. The total cost, of course, includes a decidedly deadly weapons package, all spares and costs for 75% fleet availability and “performance-based logistics support” for five years.
“The Tejas Mark-II is still on the drawing board. But if DRDO, Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd deliver the required Mark-II fighter, IAF has agreed to have a total of 18 Tejas squadrons,” said a source.
This comes after a flurry of top-level meetings in South Block, with defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman herself announcing earlier this month that the government is “not ditching” the home-grown Tejas and “putting all its energies” into ensuring the fighter is delivered at a much faster pace.
NEW DELHI: After years of being critical of the Tejas fighter, which is still not combat-ready 35 years after the light combat aircraft project was first approved by the government, the IAF has now agreed to induct 324 of the indigenous jets in the long-term to make up for its fast-depleting number of fighter squadrons.
IAF has “firmly committed” to 123 Tejas jets at present, which will come at a cost of over Rs 75,000 crore if both developmental and production costs are taken into account. But it wants the next 201 Tejas Mark-II jets to be “entirely new fighters” with much better avionics and radars, enhanced fuel and weapons carrying capacity, and more powerful engines, say top sources.
The existing single-engine Tejas has limited “endurance” of just an hour, with a “radius of action” of only 350-400-km, and weapon-carrying capacity of 3-tonne. Other single-engine fighters like Swedish Gripen-E and American F-16 have roughly double the weapon-carrying capacity and triple the endurance.
But IAF, down to just 31 fighter squadrons (18 jets in each) when at least 42 are required to tackle the “collusive threat” from China and Pakistan, realises inducting expensive foreign fighters “in large numbers” is simply not an option.
The 36 Rafale jets, ordered from France in September 2016, for instance, have cost India Rs 59,000 crore. The total cost, of course, includes a decidedly deadly weapons package, all spares and costs for 75% fleet availability and “performance-based logistics support” for five years.
“The Tejas Mark-II is still on the drawing board. But if DRDO, Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd deliver the required Mark-II fighter, IAF has agreed to have a total of 18 Tejas squadrons,” said a source.
This comes after a flurry of top-level meetings in South Block, with defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman herself announcing earlier this month that the government is “not ditching” the home-grown Tejas and “putting all its energies” into ensuring the fighter is delivered at a much faster pace.
Naval LCA NP3 was supposed to be naval LCA mk2. So does it means naval LCA mk2 is being equiped. We have already received ge414 engines and this could be the first prototype...
If true good news indeed....
