User trials of Light Combat Aircraft to commence by end of year
ASTE’s chief test pilot said the user trials will go on for a year, after which the aircraft would attain final operational clearance
The much-awaited user trials of the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) would commence by the end of this year.
The user trials, which will be conducted by the IAF’s Bangalore-based aircraft systems and testing establishment (ASTE), is a prerequisite before the LCA is inducted into the IAF.
ASTE’s chief test pilot, Group Capt N Tiwari, on Wednesday said that the user trials will commence by the end of 2011 and go on for a year, after which the aircraft would attain final operational clearance (FOC) by 2012, certifying that the aircraft is fit to be inducted into the air force.
The LCA, which has completed about 1,500-plus sorties, is currently undergoing integration of advanced weapons with a few being tested in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
Tiwari said that a few pilots of the ASTE are currently with the National Flight Testing Centre (NFTC), which has been overseeing the flight-testing activity of the LCA for over a decade.
These pilots are being deputed to NFTC to get acclimatised with the aircraft, which will be subsequently handed over to ASTE for user evaluation.
The ASTE will be given two LCA aircraft—the Limited Series Production 7 and 8 (LSP 7& 8)—for user trials.
During the user trials, the angle of attack would be increased from the present 20-22 degrees to 26-28 degrees. Similarly, the gravitation (G) limit would be raised from the present 6Gs to 8Gs.
Upon induction into the IAF, the first squadron of the LCA will be raised in Bangalore and then moved to the Sulur air force station near Coimbatore.
The Squadron 45, comprising the LCAs, would be known as Flying Daggers. At present, it operates the ageing MiG-21aircraft.