India’s Cabinet Committee on Security has given a green light to continue development of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, India’s indigenous fifth-generation fighter jet.
The state-run Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. are leading this development effort. The committee early this month granted the project 150 trillion rupees (U.S. $1.8 billion) to fund the twin-engine AMCA’s full-scale design and development, flight testing and certification.
K.P Sanjeev Kumar, a former Indian naval aviation test pilot and aviation commentator, told “an optimistic and realistic timeframe for final operational clearance would be 2040 or beyond.” Final operational clearance refers to an aircraft attaining its full capabilities so it is ready for service.
The Air Force’s first two AMCA squadrons will receive Mk-1 aircraft, powered by General Electric F414 engines that produce 22,000 pounds of thrust.
Later, the next five squadrons will receive the AMCA Mk-2, with bigger engines producing nearer 25,000 pounds of thrust for a supersonic cruising capability. The new engine with thrust vector control will be co-developed with a foreign partner.
Source: Defense News
