Wednesday, August 23: The Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk 1A is anticipated to witness more deployments on forward sites as well as involvement in international exercises in the days to come with timely delivery of the more capable version, the Indian Air Force (IAF) stated on Wednesday.
The Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) program’s status has been assessed by Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari.
To find out the condition of the LCA, he proceeded to air headquarters.
Senior officials from the DRDO, HAL, ADA, and Ministry of Defence were also present.
The LCA, according to the CAS, has led the IAF’s attempts to domesticate its fleet of aircraft.
According to him, everyone involved in this initiative must work together to ensure its success given its significance to the country.
He pointed out that the nation’s Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat efforts were heralded by the event. “More importantly, it is a flag bearer of India’s self-reliance in the aerospace sector,” he said.
All of the LCA Mk 1’s contractual fighter types had been delivered to the IAF, as was revealed during the review.
According to the Defence Ministry, officials of HAL gave the CAS assurances on the prompt delivery of the ordered twin-seaters in the next months.
In addition to the LCA Mk 1, the IAF has also committed for 83 LCA Mk-1A aircraft in 2021.
The attendees were given the assurance by HAL’s Chairman and Managing Director that deliveries of this upgraded LCA would start in February 2024.
The CAS praised the HAL and said that based on these guarantees, the LCA Mk 1A could be incorporated into a freshly established squadron at one of the IAF’s operational stations early the next year.
Despite the delays in the projects that were revealed during the evaluation, the CAS praised the efforts of all parties and stressed the need of using the LCA program’s lessons learned into future indigenous Design and Developmental initiatives.
