Light Combat Aircraft is 10, and fighting fit

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When an all-white aircraft with the tricolour painted on its tail fin took off from the HAL Airport on January 4, 2001, at 10.18 am, India took a small but significant step towards realising its capability of manufacturing and operating an indigenous fighter aircraft.

Precisely a decade later to the day, the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) has not just transformed from a mere technology demonstrator to a multi-role combat aircraft, it is on the verge of being inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) as a formidable fighter aircraft.

On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the LCA’s maiden flight, two important people shared their experience with DNA about that historic flight.

Wg Cdr (Retd) Rajiv Kothiyal, the pilot who took off on LCA’s maiden flight, recalls that the 18-minute sortie was the most challenging one in his life as years of efforts by the designers, engineers, scientists and pilots was to be put to test during the flight.

“Until that day we had done ground trials. During this flight, the aircraft had to demonstrate that it was capable of taking off and landing. The moment the aircraft was airborne, I was really on top of the world and when I landed I felt the task was accomplished,” said Wg Cdr Kothiyal, currently a commercial pilot. Asked if he had any apprehensions on piloting a technology demonstrator, he said a lot of rigorous training had gone before the first flight and that it made it easy for him.

“There were apprehensions because I was piloting a brand new aircraft. But once I got into the cockpit and got the nod for the take-off it was like any other flight,” he said.

Expressing similar views Air Marshal (Retd) P Rajkumar, the man in charge of the flight test programme during the historic first flight, said: “Considering that 90% of the aircraft’s development took place in 10 years, it is a great achievement. A major plus-point for the programme is that no mishaps have taken place during any of the flights.”

Since January 4, 2001, the LCA has completed 1,425 flights including hot weather, cold weather, desert, high altitude and sea trials.