Defence Minister Rajnath Singh flew in the Tejas fighter aircraft from the HAL airport in Bengaluru on Thursday. He became the first Defence Minister to fly in the indigenously-built light combat aircraft.
In a first, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh buckled himself into the light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas in Bengaluru on Thursday. He became the first Defence Minister to fly in this fighter jet.
The Defence Minister walked up to the aircraft, wearing a G-suit and seated himself behind the pilot in the backseat. Singh, who had donned a white helmet and an oxygen mask, was seen waving before the aircraft took off from the HAL airport in Bengaluru. He had also been briefed by the pilot and other top Indian Air Force (IAF) officials. Singh had earlier shared two pictures on Twitter and said, “All set for the day.”
Notably, Tejas became the first aircraft in India to successfully perform an “arrested landing” in Goa last Friday. This is being touted as a significant achievement in the programme before the jet is made ready for service with the Navy.
Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has already inducted a batch of Tejas aircraft. The naval version of the aircraft is still in the process of development.
The Defence Minister will also attend an exhibition of products of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in Bengaluru.
The IAF had initially ordered 40 Tejas aircraft with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). However, the IAF placed a fresh request for another batch of 83 Tejas at a cost of over Rs. 50,000 crore.
In January, former Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had become the second Indian woman leader to fly in a Sukhoi-30 fighter jet. The jet took off from the Jodhpur Air Force station for a 45-minute ride.