HAL developing new varaint LCA-1P

[R.parida]

Is I-derby ER the new BVR missile for Tejas MK-1A?

 

[Ved]

Some forums say its the NP2 version of navy which the IAF is looking forward to. Some forums say its Tejas mk1A which is an improvement over tejas mk1.

Any body in this forum who can give the exact picture?

 

[Yumdoot]

Did you mean NLCA Mk-2 because NP-2 is already flying. What would IAF wait for?

Anyhow NP-2 is not going to be earth-shakingly different from NP-1. Its based on the same engine and nearly nothing extra. The extra the NP-2 brings to the table is that it is essentially the version that can be seen as the Naval IOC-1 version. NP-2 is SBTF ready, has all avionics and weapons, is single seat, corrects for all deficiencies that were there for NP-1 and even carries all the ADA learnings from the IAF version of LCA Mk-1.

If you meant that IAF wants to wait for NLCA Mk-2, then that would be a different matter. All that extra engine power and extra control surfaces and extra length to manipulate the aerodynamics will help the Indian Navy a lot. IAF as usual can sit out doing formatted exercises with their overseas friends. I actually don't mind it except the fact that they hog the biggest capital budget which is kind of sad for a poor country like ours.

 

[ersakthivel]

Already tenders were floated to elicit pvt sector response to build 20 working variants of kaveri K-9 by the Manohar Prrikar led NDA MOD. It was the UPA MOD which shut down the K-9 with the hope of cutting MMRCA deal.

LCA was overwieght till 2013 IOC-2, Once HAL identified ways to reduce MLG weight in naval tejas (which will also lead to 200 Kg approx ballast removal behind nose cone , LCA is no longer over weight today. )

This over weight didnt stall the program, By the time ADA finished up with wake penetration, all weather trials , expanding alpha till 28 deg, cold weather trials at LEH, hot weather trials at Jaisalmar, sea trials at Goa, break over heating issues, gun trials, BVR , WVR trials and IFR trials, HAL will be ready wih their weight reduction plan.



Kaveri is not cancelled.

GTRE issues tender to manufacture 20 80 kN thrust class engines | idrw.org

tenders to pvt sector to build parts for 20 kaveri working engine is already floated, If any weight reduction happens in tejas mk1A to the level of even 500 KG, then Kaveri K-9 itself will be more or less fit enough to power tejas mk1 A in future, if possible, because kaveri K9 is a flat rated engine built for indian hot weather conditions.


News that MIDHANI has succeeded in building SCB tech will lead to further development of kaveri , because SCB tech will increae the pressure ratios and temp tolerence of the present stages, which will lead to dropping of one engine stage, which will automatically result in weight reduction and higher thermal efficiency , and much higher dry and wet power with lower weight for the same engine dia.


So all in all better prospects for kaveri program with the Tejas mk1 A development.

 

[ersakthivel]

Did you mean NLCA Mk-2 because NP-2 is already flying. What would IAF wait for?

Anyhow NP-2 is not going to be earth-shakingly different from NP-1. Its based on the same engine and nearly nothing extra. The extra the NP-2 brings to the table is that it is essentially the version that can be seen as the Naval IOC-1 version. NP-2 is SBTF ready, has all avionics and weapons, is single seat, corrects for all deficiencies that were there for NP-1 and even carries all the ADA learnings from the IAF version of LCA Mk-1.

If you meant that IAF wants to wait for NLCA Mk-2, then that would be a different matter. All that extra engine power and extra control surfaces and extra length to manipulate the aerodynamics will help the Indian Navy a lot. IAF as usual can sit out doing formatted exercises with their overseas friends. I actually don't mind it except the fact that they hog the biggest capital budget which is kind of sad for a poor country like ours.

Tejas mk1 A ill itself fulfill the IAf's origginal ASR and it will even exceed with ASEA radar, DRFM based Ew suit, ability to fire LGBs, 100 km range BVR, which were not all there in original ASR of IAF tejas even as late as 2009, when IAf asked ADA to change the R-60 WVR to R73 E WVR missile which led to FSED phase -2 redesign of the tejas wing.

So IAf tejas mk2 is a bonus for IAF.

 

[ersakthivel]

". it used to be that the landing gear was weak in LCA and so extra weight was added to strengthen it. So to balance this new weight increase, some kind of ballast was added to maintain the aerodynamic stability of the LCA . now , Hal is taking help of EAD to strengthen the landing gear, which if done will remove the need for the ballast, and this will provide the necessary weight reduction. So the upto 700 kg can be reduced by this manner."


This is what I read in another forum.

But knowing Hal , I wouldn't trust them till they deliver.

What is being said in authoritative circles is HAL designed the landing gear too conservatively leading to overweight , based on older tech level of 1984.

we dont know what IAf specs for MLG strengths for LCA in original ASR.now after seeing the MMRCA birds and after producing su-30 MKI completely in house and after getting consultations for Naval tejas from overseas HAL is simply correcting the overweight problem,

which led to the ballast weight. What happens is once MLG is lightened ballast will also be removed, this will lead to another iterative weight reduction because then landing gear wont have to cater for 6.3 tons of tejas mk1 but around 5.5 tons of tejas mk1A. Also cocured co bonded wing tech is now available and with simulation software many other parts can also be eliminated and lightened.

Because IAF ordered only 40 tejas mk1 s ADA and HAL postponed the above developments to tejas mk2.Enter the chaiwalla govt which put in an IITan as DM, who simply cancelled the ruinous 20 billion plus MMRCA circus and asked IAf to prudently focus on replacing 300 odd retiring migs and jags with tejas in a short time frame in a no nonsense manner, all these developments are now being ported on tejas mk1 in the form of tejas mk1A.

Tejas mk1 A ill itself fulfill the IAf's origginal ASR and it will even exceed with ASEA radar, DRFM based Ew suit, ability to fire LGBs, 100 km range BVR, which were not all there in original ASR of IAF tejas even as late as 2009, when IAf asked ADA to change the R-60 WVR to R73 E WVR missile which led to FSED phase -2 redesign of the tejas wing.

So IAf tejas mk2 is a bonus for IAF.

 

[ersakthivel]

SIMPLE BUT TO THE POINT

http://www.livefistdefence.com/2015/10/the-lca-tejas-needs-to-see-squadron.html
The LCA Tejas needs to see squadron service now. Goalposts, mission objectives, time-lines, costs and specifications have, over 32 years, melded into an amorphous, self-defeating paradox. One that has served no national interest, certainly not that of the Indian Air Force.

Let's be clear. This cannot be about forcing the Indian Air Force to accept a fighter plane. A Reuters report that's been reproduced across media today describes the LCA as obsolete and a potential burden on a reluctant IAF. Several others quote anonymous sources or retired officers as banging their fists on their tables and saying the Tejas is one big chunky albatross the air force needs least. One that will forever stall its planning and acquisition impetus.

Arguments, including several here on Livefist, over the years have now also melded together into one big exasperation. Nose cones. Radar efficiency. The ability to deploy smart weapons. Sustained turn rate. Hot and high operations after a cold soak. Manoeuverability at low altitude. Sea-level operations. Demonstration of air combat weapons. The lack of a mature primary sensor. The maintenance nightmare. The fact that crew will need a chisel and many hours to open any panel of the platform to find out what's wrong. Low power. You've heard it all.

The truth is, there have been too many lines in the sand. And not one of those has been respected. Not by the makers of the aircraft. And not by the Indian Air Force. A chronic lack of mutual trust between the IAF and the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) on the one hand, and a laughably hostile status quo between the IAF and Hindustan Aeronautics on the other has bedeviled even basic convergence on delivery timelines, specifications and targets. Hostilities and egos, fuelled by the pulls and pressures of an overbearing acquisition impulse pegged on the arithmetics of sanctioned strength and squadron numbers. Hostilities that have allowed a most unfortunate regime of charges and counter-charges that have achieved only two things: (a) compelled an already troubled program to flounder further, and (b) kept the makers and customer from acknowledging genuine steps of progress towards a ready and usable project. This trust deficit and sneering incredulity needs to be a case study in indigenous project management going forward, for it has never been more manifest than in Project Tejas.

As I said, the exasperations around the LCA have tossed and turned for so long in a cauldron of innumerable pressures, that they appear practically ambiguous now. Few arguments both for and against the LCA Tejas arrive with any of the muscle they did earlier. Circumstances have changed. The IAF is a much more dynamic service in crucial ways. India's military industrial complex is itself in a period of flux that will hopefully see monopolistic development and production swept away to make way for competitive technology advances that involve the private sector. The possibilities are enormous.

Since no prescription on defence really involves a prescription, I'll end with a real one: set one final date for the induction of the LCA Tejas. Induct the Tejas on that date, no matter what has or hasn't been achieved by that date as stipulated in the last discussions on record. Roll out squadron service. Continue testing alongside squadron service (not uncommon for new platforms), as had been the original plan before goalposts were shifted once again. Get the Tejas to stretch its legs regularly at exercises. Send it out to the island bases on detachment to see if it's the workhorse it was built to be. Retrofit all new developments and additions, including IFR capabilities.

What about the air force? Is a sub-optimal platform being foisted on it? Truthfully, only squadron service will ever really tell. Is a reluctant air force being forced to accept an obsolete platform? Not really. The IAF has accounted for the LCA Tejas in its orbat, and has now expanded that requirement based on a matrix of pressures that includes, significantly, the lack of an alternative, seeing sense in moving forward on a platform the IAF is undeniably invested in and, finally, the realisation that the Tejas could conceivably be a platform far superior than its trodden-on image.

That's the key. Get it out into air force stations. That isn't the kind of fatalistic/idealistic prescription it sounds like. Several aircraft that have been mired in development hell have blossomed upon breathing squadron air.

Former IAF chief Srinvasapuram Krishnaswamy once said to me in an interview days before he retired, "I feel we should simply induct the Tejas. Once it is in service, a sense of ownership will come. And we can progressively improve it jointly along with the developers. The aircraft needs to get out of test and into squadrons. That is the only solution."

That was 11 years ago.

The breast bleating self loathing tone adopted in this sh!t aroor piece is totally uncalled for.

Not a single word about aerodynamic features of tejas on this article!!!!

Who the hell cares for the tech illiterate "OPINON PIECE" of this guy right now?

These are all efforts at I told you so tone that will be adopted by many fake defence ANALysts.

It is a shame that this guy vomits such a junk even after I tweeted him the link to the page.

http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/threads/combat-aircraft-technology-and-evolution.47398/page-13

He didnt care to read , and doesnt know a dimwit about the potential of tejas mk1 and mk1A, It is no wonder that after being fed up with these sorts of con artists clan(you can close your eyes and add that sengupths and rajat PUNdit fakes to the list!!! ) an ADA guy has cryptically remarked that the machine will speak for itslef and let the matter rest there.

 

[ersakthivel]

If such a moron had held the highest post in IAF, no wonder the IAF leadership today is under question! Tejas is short-range? For a 'LIGHT' fighter it has substantial range, and what was he wishing for - a expeditionary force like USA has? What is Indias need - to protect its boundary or striking 1000s miles away?

Of course, Rafale and LCA are not comparable. How great an assessment!

India needs a host of defence equipment, not only fighter planes to modernise all of its armed forces. Even IAF needs more machines in different categories. Where would the fund come from, if $25-30 billion is spent after the bunch of overpriced fighters. However, capable those fighters may be, acquisition of those will ruin acquisitions of other necessary machines.

This guy sounds like a import lobbyist through and through. Tejas is far more than a technology demonstrator and proven its worth in 2000 hrs of successful testing without a single accident. It is a perfect light fighter, and cost wise just what India needs in large no.



If you would 'like' to have it, then those can wait. You first get, what you need to protect Indian air space.



That is what matters. Indigenous is the mantra. All the rubber-heads salivating for phoren maal, can go suck eggs. India needs to learn of production indigenous defence products if it ever wishes to become more than a 'influential asian' nation.




EXACTLY

He is the chief MMRCA architect and tried to close or delay the tejas program as much as possible when he was at the helm.

Even now in the recently concluded stratpost conference of vayu he peddled all sorts of misinformation on tejas.

he was purported to have said that we should put as many stage on kaveri as possible, and once adivced GTRE to have as much as 11 stages for kaveri!!!, and criticized it heavily when GTRE chose lower stages for kaveri engines.

Now world over trend is reducing stages, reducing weight and increasing the thermal efficiency of the stages to get a lesser weight more thrust to weight ratio engines for a high thrust to weight ration engines.

It is another matter now that GTRE has succeeded in getting the desired 80 Kn thrust from the same 6 stage trans sonic compressor engine, with variable guided inlet vane tech.

And future course for kaveri is ,is to adapt SCB tech , improve thermal efficiency and further reduce weight by further dropping of another stage.

 

[ersakthivel]

I remember Modi telling Parrikar to shut his face and stay out of the media the last time he said no more Rafale would be bought. Now he has some underling leaking to the press his statement as he cowers in the shadows. The armed services give the government a shopping list and it is their job to procure it at the best price possible. It is not the place of Parrikar to tell the IAF chief that he has to accept inferior fighters to meet political objectives. The politicians do not dictate India's defence needs.

If only the armed services can guarantee that french will never stab us like the did with mistral, and will stand with us by supplying critical tech and spares for rafale when india is faced with do or die battle with china-pak combo, to make rafales flight worthy through out the entire length of conflict, and will give us IP rights to upgrade rafale with whatever we tech we may develop for AMCA in future

and if the armed services chief can raise 20 billion dollars for rafale by selling their grandfather's property, then we can dismiss Manohar parrikar back to goa and make Armed forces chiefs as joint defence ministers!!!!

 

[ersakthivel]

Endurance will vary greatly and that's what probably was alluded to by him. He is right. LCA can't be compared to rafale . and we don't know if LCA is adequate since we are not the end users.

But retired chair marshals lying through the teeth by making statements like rafale will have thrice the range of sukhois, and rafale will have more than three times the range of tejas is also unfair.

It is the fuel fraction which determines the useful combat range for a fighter with optimum weapon load.

Fuel fraction is weight of the fuel/ weight of the fighter with no external tanks included in the calculation.

The difference between rafale and tejas mk1 in this spec is just about 13 percent or so is what I remember from older post. ANd for tejas mk2 the difference is about 5 to 8 percent only.

Nobody sends a 200 million dollar fighter like rafale into enemy territory with just two bombs and rest all external fuel tanks to claim 1000s of kms of combat range.

 

[ersakthivel]

Ooooooo....strong words!!! You perhaps do not know, but Parrikar is not a babe in politics or BJP or RSS affiliation, that he would 'cower' and Modi would 'rebuke' him.

And, politicos has the duty to fulfill India's defence needs IN ADDITION to other needs like economical to development to diplomatic. IAF NEVER dictates or can dictate the MoD what to buy, it only has power to propose, and minister with sue consultation with IAF and other advisors and committees decide whther the requirement is actually viable to be fulfilled.

It is Parrikar's place to dictate terms when IAF refuse to see the fiscal reality and future benefit by wanting a foreign machine, and rejecting an indigenous machine. Particularly when it is clear that the IAF brass has an uncanny greed for foreign goods.

Unlike a tech illiterate A.K .Antony whose only mission was do nothing useful in MOD,

manohar Parrikar is an IIT engineer who can come to some informed conclusion by reading stuff in spec sheets and comparing a few graphs and calculation all along applying some aerodynamic principles to know what will make tejas mk1A worth its weight in gold for IAF. Probably no pro MMRCA gangs of retired chair marshal can fool him neither do the defence "jourANALists " who dont even have a wee bit of knowledge about platforms and their evolution , who peddle the motivated lies floated by import lobby retired chair marshal gang!

It is the genius of Modi to plant him in this crucial tech related MOD which has yeilded rich dividends for tejas program and HAL , because as the minister for defence productions he also heads the HAL.

Thats why when the rered chairmarshals gang howled day and night that there is no alternative for Rafale, he simple siad there is plan B and postulated upgraded Su-30 MKI and tejas versions can fill the gap.

 

[ersakthivel]

Bro, I know you loath DRDO and in extension HAL. I will also admit that those two organisations' performance record has not been stellar, but that too was no less for IAF's lack of enthusiasm for domestic product. Also, IAF wanted a Light Combat Aircraft, which of course is not going to be of comparable performance of Rafale. No way in the world a Light fighter can have endurance of a Medium weight fighter - simple physics would not allow it and being a retd. chief of Air forces, he should have known that.
All over the world, except possibly the USA, no country can ever fully satisfy their armed forces' wants. None simply have the funds. Certainly not an emerging economy like India. The Rafale is way too expensive to be feasible for India to buy in such a no. as wanted by the IAF. Also, you need to nurture your home made machine for not only your future tech developmwnt but also for fiscal benefit and having not inducted LCA, IAF and earlier GoI have shown criminal negligence.

Will you say the same when IAF starts blocking AMCA in coming years too?

For peotecting our borders, a large no. of light fighters are what we need at present, not small nos. of heavier fighters which are so expensive that other acquisitions will have to be put on hold to pay for those. Leave aside the benefit of having our own fighter.

Bro you dont have to be self loathing about HAl or DRDO.

Just see at the end of Modi regime, how many of the DRDO -HAl-CVRDE platforms will have seen inductions and heavy order books to know what has happened in the past, what is happening now and what will happen in the future.

The days of iimporting basic platforms are over,

See RIL entry into defence, L&T winning Vajra order, news about TATA kestrel and now about tejas mk1A, you know that it is not the lack of effort on behalf of HAL or DRDO which or indian pvt sector which was the reason for whole sale import till now.

 

[ersakthivel]

I agree with you on what you are saying but my grievence is that we are stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea.


Anyway, @Decklander was saying that LCA mk1a will be a potent beast . so keeping my fingers crossed. Hope DM keeps a tight lease on Hal reg this matter.

This is the grist of the discussion I had with the same person you mentioned in your post in another forum,
tejas mk1A needs no one's certificate to become a potent beast, HAL knows it ADA knows it and now Manohar Parrikar and Modi also know it, The rest of wailing retired chair marshals and import lobby sh!t piece article peddlers faking as defence ANALysts can go to hell.

For the 400 odd pilots of obsolete mig and Jag platforms in IAF who face the perils of going against PLAF and PAF decent fleet, in any untoward incident in the near future before AMCA and FGFA mature in IAF,tejas mk1 , mk1 A and mk2 will give them a reason to smile(and a reason to live).

They can retire and tell their kids that they were the first to lead IAF on the home grown 4.5th gen tech fighter tech.

ANd the jawan facing the onslaught of treacherous china pak combo ,the high numbers of tejas variants that will see service in IAF(due to cost effectiveness and independence from foreign clutches at critical times in battle when high intensity air support is needed) will be a life saver.

In short 300 plus tejas that can be rolled out in a short time IAF willing with another pvt sector production line within a decade will don the role of the peacemaker in the sub continent.

 

[Jagdish58]

He is the chief MMRCA architect and tried to close or delay the tejas program as much as possible when he was at the helm.

Even now in the recently concluded stratpost conference of vayu he peddled all sorts of misinformation on tejas.

he was purported to have said that we should put as many stage on kaveri as possible, and once adivced GTRE to have as much as 11 stages for kaveri!!!, and criticized it heavily when GTRE chose lower stages for kaveri engines.

Now world over trend is reducing stages, reducing weight and increasing the thermal efficiency of the stages to get a lesser weight more thrust to weight ratio engines for a high thrust to weight ration engines.

It is another matter now that GTRE has succeeded in getting the desired 80 Kn thrust from the same 6 stage trans sonic compressor engine, with variable guided inlet vane tech.

And future course for kaveri is ,is to adapt SCB tech , improve thermal efficiency and further reduce weight by further dropping of another stage.

Admiral Arun prakash took on single handedly all IAF reps in that conclave, where he explained how navy works on home grown platform , then MMRCA chief himself agreed they did a mistake by retiring HF-24 instead of going to Block-2

One more funny comment in that conf was passed by Ex Airchief tyagi who said Mig-29 is cheap but very expensive to maintain Rafale is expensive & cheap to maintain , countered with a question then why IAF went for Mig-29 his face went pale

IAF chief Arup Raha has confirmed 120 LCA MK-1A that is final


Infuture Navy might even order Naval LCA Mk-1A till MK2 is ready as stopgap , since they have already asked for testing Mig-29 & Naval LCA for EMALS test

 

[Yumdoot]

@Jagdish58, you probably did not get the game.

IAF now wants to restrict LCA Mk-1 or Mk-1A to just 120 and probably even kill off Mk-2.

Reality is IAF has about 14 sqads of Mig21 and Mig27 going out of business. That is something like 300 aircrafts. Either Parrikar has to ensure that IAF is tied to LCA version for good else this 300-120 is going to get imported. IAF leadership is biding time till some pliant leadership comes to power in Delhi.

 

[ersakthivel]

Lest you forget he was ordered to media silence for 6 months last June which means he can't say anything until the end of the year. So yes, he is hiding while his underlings get his message out.



Actually, it is the services that provide the ministry with its wish list, then it goes to committee. The ministry does not dictate what is on that list. They don't know the first thing about what the services need. That is why they pay Generals, Admirals and Air Marshals to know about it.



If it was up to Parrikar there would be no Rafale at all. It is his job to get the money the services need by making the case to GoI. He is failing miserably because he doesn't agree with the top brass who know what it needs. He is making it all a political game while the services suffer with rusting junk.

Pray, tell me who ordered him?

He just shut his mouth in disgust when presstitute media started twisting every word of him due to his opposition to wasteful imports.

he has hit back with vengance with a slew of make in india deals and now tejas mk1 A is the crowning glory of his tenure.

Now the retired chairmarshals and import lobby jourANALysts who are now looking for a nice place to hide.

It is too much to accuse generals of having the needed knowledge to build up indian mil industry with optimum capability plat from procured in high numbers in a cost effective manner leading to country's strategic independence.

They can go on peddling lies like rafale has three times the range of su-30 MKI and tejas . But it wont wash with this IIT grad of a DM.

IAF itself admitted as much when it blithely replied that "IT DID NOT HAVE TECHNICALLY CAPABLE PERSONS TO EVEN SIT IN A HIGH LEVEL CO ORDINATION -LIAISON COMMITTEE ON LCA " till 2006, when CAG asked why IAf did not form liaison committed with ADA on LCA by 2001 as mandated by govt.

It was this singular lack of technical capability(or unwillingness to promote guys who know stuff on indigenous program ,read philip Rajkumar's "The Tejas Sory") that hurt the LCA program.

Because until IAF came on board in 2006 and asked for close to 250 changes , ADA had no idea about IAF needs.

It was the sorting out of the 250 requests for action from IAF as late as 2006 which contributed to significant delays on tejas program as per CAG report.

Less said the better about DGMF running around with night night blind T-72s in the 21st century and importing desert&indian conditions unfit T-90s in thousands while making Arjun jump through the various hoops in endless trials , without giving any meaningful order numbers.

Fortunately the same strategy adapted by IAF on ordering low numbers of tejas mk1A in an effort to stall th e program didnt succeed, becasue Manohar parrikar appointed by no nonsense chaiwala PM called their bluff and held them by their scruff of their neck to make them see the merit in 120 tejas mk1 A orders.

Unfortunately for Arjun through out its development ,no such worthy was there at the helm in MOD, which was all staffed by dynasty crooks or senile imbecile politicians Only exception was George Fernandez when he called the DGMF bluff on stalling arjun mk1 on the condition of full fording , which was not asked for by IA in its GSQR which was revised 5 times to please the import lobby by dangling a carrot tied to the stick at the forehead of CVRDE and make them run forever in a serious of trials ,while 1000s of T-90s were imported without a single dessert trial!!!

 

[ersakthivel]

@Jagdish58, you probably did not get the game.

IAF now wants to restrict LCA Mk-1 or Mk-1A to just 120 and probably even kill off Mk-2.

Reality is IAF has about 14 sqads of Mig21 and Mig27 going out of business. That is something like 300 aircrafts. Either Parrikar has to ensure that IAF is tied to LCA version for good else this 300-120 is going to get imported. IAF leadership is biding time till some pliant leadership comes to power in Delhi.

IAF is out of the picture as far as controlling the destiny of tejas is concerned, now the future of tejas mk 1A.mk2 all are in the safe and secure hands of Modi-Parrikar combo.

As and when tejas mk2 appears (Since purposeful NAvy is backing it to the hilt) IAF will be again forced to see the reason and , it will be ordered in high hundreds as well, because tejas mk2 will be so close to MMRCA contenders at a very low cost with the strategic autonomy to change everything in it as and when local items are developed for imported engines and missiles. Because AMCA program will lead to local development of these techs making the whole tejas fleet of close to 300 fighters completely indian free from any foreign interference and conferring unparalleled strategic autonomy for india, a point the import lobby-retired chairmarshals- jouANALystst gang consistently fail to see or much rather pretend not to see.

What is more it will have huge export market because thousands of mig era fighters are retiring all over the world in the coming decades and tejas is a compelling candidate for nations that wants to free themselves from the super power politics.

 

[Jagdish58]

@Jagdish58, you probably did not get the game.

IAF now wants to restrict LCA Mk-1 or Mk-1A to just 120 and probably even kill off Mk-2.

Reality is IAF has about 14 sqads of Mig21 and Mig27 going out of business. That is something like 300 aircrafts. Either Parrikar has to ensure that IAF is tied to LCA version for good else this 300-120 is going to get imported. IAF leadership is biding time till some pliant leadership comes to power in Delhi.

Yup but LCA mk2 is naval project IAF can't close it

Govt has caped the qty of rafale to 36 more not possible expensive . Hence they have to order LCA mk2 as well to get squadron numbers

Now they are going after PAK-FA to fund more Rafale that will also not happen

 

[Mad Indian]

What is being said in authoritative circles is HAL designed the landing gear too conservatively leading to overweight , based on older tech level of 1984.

we dont know what IAf specs for MLG strengths for LCA in original ASR.now after seeing the MMRCA birds and after producing su-30 MKI completely in house and after getting consultations for Naval tejas from overseas HAL is simply correcting the overweight problem,

which led to the ballast weight. What happens is once MLG is lightened ballast will also be removed, this will lead to another iterative weight reduction because then landing gear wont have to cater for 6.3 tons of tejas mk1 but around 5.5 tons of tejas mk1A. Also cocured co bonded wing tech is now available and with simulation software many other parts can also be eliminated and lightened.

Because IAF ordered only 40 tejas mk1 s ADA and HAL postponed the above developments to tejas mk2.Enter the chaiwalla govt which put in an IITan as DM, who simply cancelled the ruinous 20 billion plus MMRCA circus and asked IAf to prudently focus on replacing 300 odd retiring migs and jags with tejas in a short time frame in a no nonsense manner, all these developments are now being ported on tejas mk1 in the form of tejas mk1A.

Tejas mk1 A ill itself fulfill the IAf's origginal ASR and it will even exceed with ASEA radar, DRFM based Ew suit, ability to fire LGBs, 100 km range BVR, which were not all there in original ASR of IAF tejas even as late as 2009, when IAf asked ADA to change the R-60 WVR to R73 E WVR missile which led to FSED phase -2 redesign of the tejas wing.

So IAf tejas mk2 is a bonus for IAF.

Where are the tejas SP? Isn't four SP supposed to have been delivered now? Hal has missed the deadline for SP2 "again". You can trust this junj called HAL all you want, I will trust it when they actually deliver.

 

[Mad Indian]

Too much fanboyism in this thread as usual, living up to DFI status as an echo chamber. I suggest people to visit alternative forums to really know about what happened to LCA and why it failed(and no IAF is not responsible for HAL's incompetence).