LCA’s naval variant to---make debut at Aero India

Shubhadeep Choudhury

Tribune News Service

Bengaluru, February 11

The naval variant of the indigenous light combat aircraft (LCA) is all set to enthral the audience at the five-day Aero India exhibition beginning here on February 18.

While its more famous cousin LCA (Air Force variant) is a veteran of the biennial air show held in Bengaluru, the naval version of the military jet will make its debut when it participates in the fly past after the inauguration of the exhibition by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Even though the fighter variant of LCA (Navy) was flight tested for the first time recently, it is the two-seater trainer version that will fly in the Aero India show.

The trainer variant is the first prototype (NP-1) of LCA (Navy). Since its maiden flight in April 2012, it had also taken off from the ski-jump facility at the INS Hansa at Goa as part of its carrier compatibility tests.

Impressed with the performance of the naval variant of LCA, the government has already loosened its purse strings to support the project.

“Since we are doing it for the first time, only two prototypes of LCA (Navy) Mk I were initially sanctioned. But as we started making progress, some confidence also started building up and they (MoD) said we should have a third prototype. Now they have said that in order to gain more confidence, we should have two more prototypes,” Commodore CD Balaji, project director of LCA (Navy) told The Tribune here.

Balaji said they were, at present, preparing papers for putting up before the Cabinet for formal approval of the enhanced budget for manufacturing three additional prototypes. The papers would be submitted to the Cabinet in “two to three months time”, he said.

The third prototype will be a trainer variant while the two remaining prototypes of LCA’s naval variant (Mk I) will be in fighter configuration.

Balaji said that the prototypes for LCA (Navy) Mk II variety will all be fighters.

Here also, only two prototypes were initially sanctioned. However, in a meeting of ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) held in December, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar asked for having three additional prototypes, taking the total number of prototypes in this category also to five. Chief of the Naval Staff was also present in the meeting.

This is to “bring significant movement in the programme”, Balaji said.

The fighter variant of the carrier compatible jet (Mk I) flight-tested recently will be put up for static display at the aero show. The stationary naval fighter will be fitted with weapons including missiles and bombs.

“LCA (naval variant) is being visualised for deployment at indigenous aircraft carrier, which is supposed to get ready by the end of 2018. By around 2020, the LCA fleet should start operating from the carrier,” Balaji said.

The carrier will have a mix of strike aircraft and air defence aircraft. While MiG-29 will be the striker aircraft, the LCA will perform as air defence platforms to thwart attack on the carrier by enemy aircraft.

Two key weapons in the naval variant LCA’s arsenal – R 73 missile and Derby beyond visual range missile – for fighting against enemy aircraft had been already tested by the Air Force version of LCA, Balaji said.