News From Sahara Samay:: Tejas' hot weather trial successful
'Tejas' hot weather trial successful
Posted at Friday, 06 June 2008 09:06 IST
Bangalore, June 6: Hot weather flight trials of India's light combat aircraft Tejas were conducted successfully at Air Force Station in Nagpur.
The trials were planned at Nagpur because of the high ambient temperature conditions prevailing there during this period, a DRDO release said here.
The aim of the trials was to test operation of the aircraft systems under high ambient temperature conditions of over 40 degree Celsius and the stringent conditions the aircraft would be expected to operate in after its induction into the Indian Air Force.
A composite team of members from IAF (AF), ADA, HAL, CEMILAC, DGAQA, with support from Air Force Station, Nagpur and Maintenance Command, IAF, conducted the trials, the release said.
A total of seven flights amounting to four hours were flown at Nagpur on two prototype aircraft, PV2 and PV3.
The tests included flights at 200 metres above ground and speeds up to 1,000 km per hour after 'hot soaking' the aircraft on tarmac for two to four hours, where the aircraft skin temperature reached values in excess of 70 degree Celsius.
The test flights were monitored in real time using a mobile telemetry station of Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), positioned at Nagpur for this purpose.
This was the first time that the Tejas aircraft had flown to a distance of about 1,000 km from Bangalore non-stop at such high ambient temperature conditions.
The aircraft is next planned for operations over the deserts of Rajasthan, delivering precision guided bombs, later this year, it said.