New Delhi: Defence Minister Manohar
Parrikar handed over the first of the indigenously-built Light
Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas to the Indian Air
Force (IAF) in Bengaluru on Saturday.
The ceremony took place in the presence of Air
Chief Marshal Anup Raha at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in
Bengaluru.
The LCA has finally been handed over to the Air
Force after initial operational clearance-II, which signifies that the Tejas is
airworthy in different conditions. This starts the process of induction of
fighters being built at home under a project that was commenced in 1983 and has
already cost the exchequer over Rs 17,000 crores.
The Initial Operational Clearance-I was granted
to the aircraft being built by state-owned HAL in January 2011. The Final
Operational Clearance is expected by the year-end.
According to sources, 20 aircraft will be built
by 2017-2018, to make the first squadron of the aircraft.
The LCA programme was initiated in 1983 to
replace the ageing MiG-21s in Indian Air Force's combat fleet but has missed
several deadlines due to several reasons.
Courtesy: Zee News.
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