Photo Essay: Aero India 2013 - Inauguration Day images

The ninth edition of Aero India opened late and missing a few performers, notably the Russian Knights air display team, which have still not reached the show by the end of the second day.

A photo essay on some of the performers on the first day.

A Dassault Rafale B takes off during the inaugural ceremony at Aero India 2013. The Rafale is the fighter that has been selected by the Indian Air-force for its MMRCA requirement.

A United States Air-force Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 50 from the 14th Fighter Squadron based out of Misawa Air Base in Japan.

The venerable de Havilland DH 82 Tiger Moth now fully restored, performs.

The HAL Rudra Mk-IV helicopter which is an armed version of the HAL Dhruv, achieved initial operational clearance on 4th February 2013.

A close up of the Rudra as it comes in to land, the pilot can be seen looking at the runway

The new Indian Air Force Embraer EMB-145 AEWCS fitted with the AESA radar array.

The HAL Light Combat Helicopter.

A USAF C-17 of the the 535th Airlift Squadron which is part of the 15th Wing at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. The wing is of the KC-135 tanker which accompanied the F-16's from Japan.

The new Pilatus PC-7 Mk-2 basic trainer of the Indian Air-force.

The Mil Mi-17B-5 is the latest troop carrier of the Indian Air-force.

The HAL Tejas Mk I Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) program.

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Tejas Light Combat Aircraft undergoing advanced weapon testing

India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is carrying out a two-week second phase weapon testing trials of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas at an Air Force base in the north-western sector.

As per DRDO officials

"The focus of the current phase of testing is safe separation and accuracy of weapon delivery. The results from the tests would validate aerodynamic interference data as well as complex weapon release algorithms in different modes of release,"

A composite test team comprising of specialists from Aeronautical Development Agency, Indian Air Force (IAF), Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., and other aerospace agencies is also at the base to evaluate the performance of the aircraft.



DRDO has also linked the air base with the base station at Bangalore enabling designers and other specialists to monitor the activities in real time. In parallel the trials are using the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) GPS Radiosonde to gather accurate upper air data at the trial location.

The first of seven squadrons of LCA's are expected to be delivered to the Indian Air Force by December 2010. PTI.

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Eurofighter Typoon thrust vectoring engine proposed for Tejas LCA

Eurojet is to propose a thrust-vectoring version of the Eurofighter Typhoon's EJ200 powerplant to meet India's requirement for up to 150 engines to equip the first squadrons of its indigenously developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

The Aeronautical Development Agency - which is leading development of the Tejas - is expected to issue a request for proposals in the next few weeks, pitching the EJ200 against General Electric's F414.

Read the complete story from Flight International here.

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Tejas Light Combat Aircraft sucessfully completes high altitude trials

India's indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas has achieved a major milestone when its prototype landed at Leh air base in the high-altitude Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Tejas (LCA) programme reached a major milestone when the prototype vehicle PV-3 landed at Leh on December 13 this year at 1326 hours," Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) officials said here today.

The event is seen as significant on many counts as Leh airfield is situated at an altitude of 10,600 feet and is one of the highest airfields in the world with a temperature variation ranging from plus 5 degrees Celsius to minus 20 degrees Celsius.

The objective of the current phase of flight trials at Leh was to expose the on-board systems to the extreme low temperatures while making an assessment of the aircraft performance in the rarefied atmospheric conditions, DRDO officials said.

Two Tejas prototypes PV-3 and LSP-2 were involved in this important environmental test. The LSP-2 prototype powered by the latest IN20 engine with Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) is in the Standard of Preparation (SOP) that would be cleared for induction into the IAF service soon.

As per reports received from the trial location, the current phase of flight trial was progressing well with aircraft and systems performing well, as expected. The aircraft were soaked overnight in cold weather, with temperature around minus 20 degrees Celsius and powered up next day for operation, officials said.

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