Ansari visits HAL, BEL

Bengaluru, Jan 7 (IANS) Vice President Hamid Ansari Wednesday visited state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) facilities here for a first-hand account of technologies and products manufactured for the defence forces.

"Ansari evinced keen interest in knowing the indigenously-built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas and Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv and viewed different aircraft at our flight hangars," HAL said in a statement.

The defence behemoth is working with the state-run Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and its subsidiaries Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE)to get the final operational clearance (FOC) from the regulator (Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (Cemilac) for the fourth-generation homegrown fighter (Tejas) and its induction into the Indian Air Force (IAF) fleet.

As a single-engine multi-role supersonic fighter, Tejas is slated to replace the IAF's ageing Russian-made MiG-21 fleet when it is inducted in six squadrons after the FOC.

Weighing 8.5 tonnes, the LCA can carry three tonnes of weapons, including air-to-air missiles, laser guided bombs, guns, conventional/retarded bombs and beyond visual range missiles.

Each squadron will have 20 fighters and will be based at Sulur Air Force base near Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.

HAL chairman R.K. Tyagi, director (human resources) V.M. Chamola, director (design and development) T. Suvarna Raju and Bangeluru complex managing director K. Naresh Babu briefed Ansari on the company's operations.

"Dhruv, which has a proven track record in military and civil operations, is operated by defence forces and state governments," the statement noted.

About 140 Dhruv choppers are in operation and logged 120,900 flight hours.

Earlier, Ansari unveiled the moderenised BEL Software Technology centre of BEL and visited the manufacturing, integration and test facilities for the Akash missile system and the coastal surveillance system at the company's complex here.

"In modern day warfare, software is playing a crucial role. Realising its importance, we have been building up expertise in software for defence applications," BEL chairman and managing director S.K. Sharma said on the occasion.

The centre develops software application for the operational requirements of defence forces and the coast guard.