Tejas jets successful firing of BVR missile - Fusion - WeRIndia

The native Light Combat Aircraft Tejas (LCA Tejas) has just achieved another milestone. It has successfully test-fired an air-to-air Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile. This successful test-fire brings it another step closer to Final Operation Clearance (FOC).

The missile was launched by Tejas while piloted by Wing Commander Siddharth Singh off of the coast of Goa. Tejas launched the missile under the worst-case scenario, but it still managed to successfully demonstrate safe operation.

One of the major objectives of Final Operational Clearance of LCA Tejas is the integration of Derby. Derby is a BVR class missile.

The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) is an autonomous society of the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO). The ADA designed and developed Tejas. When LCA Tejas test-fired its BVR missile, the aircraft was tracked by two other Tejas aircrafts in close formation.

The two Tejas aircrafts were tracking LCA Tejas to capture the firing event.

They used specially-instrumented high-speed cameras. These cameras can provide a detailed analysis of the event. They can also provide a comparison with the simulation model for validation. This can allow the DRDO to collect data of the firing event that is as accurate as possible.

The Derby has been successfully integrated and demonstrated. Based on this successful firing event, the Regional Center for Military Airworthiness (RCMA) has cleared the series production aircraft of Squadron 45 to be equipped with Derby operational capability.

The RCMA is a unit of the DRDO. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Minister of Defense, complimented the DRDO, along with other agencies, for making the LCA Tejas fighter jet into a world-class aircraft platform.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has ordered 40 Tejas Mark-1 version fighter jets. In December, the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) received a request for proposal by the IAF for the procurement of 83 more Tejas fighter jets.

These 83 fighter jets will cost about ₹50,000 crore. Thanks to the efforts of the DRDO and other agencies, the IAF will be more equipped and capable than ever with these Tejas fighter jets.

Image credit: Tejas – Made in India 1st Fighter Plane image by Bikash Das is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Image Reference: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bikashdas/16413042458