The Hindu : Karnataka News : LCA may get Kaveri engine by 2006 end

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jan 22, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka

LCA may get Kaveri engine by 2006 end

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, JAN. 21. Over the past few years, India has gained a lot of technical expertise and is now on the verge of joining a select group of countries that manufacture aircraft engines, M. Natarajan, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, said here today.

Addressing presspersons on the proposed Aero India 2005, he said the indigenously built Kaveri engine, which had undergone ground and high altitude testing, will be fitted on a Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) by the end of 2006 or in the first quarter of 2007.

With this, India will join ranks with countries such as the U.S., Russia, the U.K., France and China, which manufacture engines for military and civilian aircraft.

The Kaveri engine had been designed and developed by the Bangalore-based Gas Turbine Research Establishment and the Aeronautical Development Agency under the aegis of the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).

A private company had been entrusted with the task of developing a test bed for the engine. "All the data is being studied and analysed," he said.

Multimode radar

Mr. Natarajan said a multimode radar (MMR) had been developed and is being tested on a Light Combat Aircraft.

The MMR allows safe flight down to a 100-foot set clearance at night, in adverse weather, and in high-threat environments. It lowers the probability of detection by enemy forces.

He said a private company had placed orders for the remote controlled vehicle (UAV), Nishant. There are plans to develop unmanned combat vehicles. India is willing to share its technology with others and develop partnerships. This will help cut production time. "But of course, they have to be mutually beneficial," he added.

He said Bangalore receives the largest chunk of Defence budget for research and development. A sum of Rs. 10,000 crores had been invested by the DRDO for the development of an airborne early warning system, unmanned combat vehicles, and technology for Light Combat Aircraft. It recruited 1,000 scientists last year, he added.

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