India’s first home-grown fighter jet Tejas was finally inducted into the IAF this week after a tortuous saga spread over 33 long years. Here’s all you need to know about this fighter jet:
Different generations of jet fighters

a.    Subsonic fighter planes built during the mid-1940s to mid-1950s are classified as first generation fighters. These planes had a basic avionic system (electronic systems used on aircraft) with no radar or self-protection system.

b.    Radar-connected second generation planes were made between the mid-1950s and early 1960s.

These jets could reach supersonic speed and were equipped with semi-guided missiles unlike the earlier generation that used cannons, machine guns and unguided bombs and rockets for attack. MiG- known second generation fighter.

c.    Third generation planes manufactured between the early 1960s and 1970 had advanced maneuverability and weapons systems. These planes, that included the MiG-23 and Mirage III, were capable of shooting at targets beyond the pilot’s visible range.

d.    Fourth generation fighters were conceived in the 1970s and became operational in the early 1980s. These planes were also equipped with fly-by-wire systems, which meant replacement of manual fight control with electronic devices. Notable fighters of this generation are the American F-15, F-16, French Mirage 2000 and the Soviet MiG-29.

 Tejas: – fourth Generation

Tejas is a light combat aircraft (LCA) that uses fourth generation technology. It has a configuration optimised primarily for manoeuverability and agility. The plane is equipped with a digital fly-bywire flight control system to ease handling.

This helps the pilot do more head down activities (especially mission critical activities) without worrying about the aircraft deviating from its flight path. Nearly half of theSS material (45%) used to make it contains CFC, among the highest proportions of CFC in aircraft of its class, making it much lighter than others.

To achieve self-reliance in aerospace, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) was established in . Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, (HAL) was to be the principal partner, with participation of various Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) laboratories, public & private sector industries as well as academic institutions. By 1990, the first design was completed and full funding was approved in April 1993. In 2001, the LCA made its first flight and was named LCA-Tejas by Atal Bihar Vajpayee, who was Prime Minister at the time.

By 2009, it had completed 1,000 flights and was ready for formal induction. On July 1, 2016, it was inducted into the Indian Air Force, 32 years after ADA’s establishment.
Advancement in fighter Aircraft Technology

Most fighter jets used by major militaries today are classified as of the 4+ and 4++ generations. The latest is fifth generation fighters. Aeronautics company Lockheed Martin defines fifth generation planes as aircraft with super manoeuverability, advanced computer systems and all aspect stealth, making it virtually impossible for intercepting radars to locate them.

Since 2005, the company is marketing its F-. These definitions vary with the company, agency or expert’s personal opinion on evaluating aircraft and the same aircraft can be classified as belonging to different generations. Russia’s yet-to-be-operational Sukhoi PAK FA is also considered a fifth generation plane.

India’s fifth generation fighter plane will reportedly be co developed by Sukhoi and HAL and will be based on the Sukhoi PAK FA.

Features of Tejas

The first squadron of home-grown Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas was inducted into Indian Air Force (IAF) at the Aircraft System Testing Establishment in Bengaluru on 1 July 2016.  The squadron has been named ‘Flying Daggers’ 45.

State-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) handed over the first two Tejas aircraft to the Air Force.

The aircraft will be operated for nearly two years by the squadron at Bengaluru before it is moved to its designated location at Sulur near Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.

According to IAF, the idea is to have a total of six aircraft this financial year 2016-17 and about eight in the financial year 2017-18. Tejas will feature in combat plan of the IAF in bases also.

All squadrons of Tejas will have 20 planes in total, including four in reserve. As per the plan, while 20 would be inducted under the Initial Operational Clearance, another 20 will be inducted later with Beyond Visual Range Missile (BVR) and some other features.
IAF plans to induct over 80 aircraft with better specifications known as Tejas 1A. The upgraded version of Tejas, with Active Electrically Scanned Array Radar, Unified Electronic Warfare Suite, mid-air refueling capacity and advanced beyond the vision range missiles, will cost between 275 crore and 300 crore rupees.

Characteristics of Tejas

• The Light Combat Aircraft Tejas is a supersonic, single-seat, single-engine multirole light fighter aircraft that uses fourth generation technologies.

• It was co-developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency in cooperation with the Bengaluru-based Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

• It is built from CFC materials and has unstable aerodynamics

• It is equipped with a quadruplex digital fly-by-wire flight control system to ease handling by the pilot

• It incorporates an advanced glass cockpit that comprises all the round dialed electro-mechanical instruments

• It is fitted with the coherent pulse-Doppler Multi Mode Radar that is designed to operate equally effectively in the Air to Air and Air to Surface domains.

• It is fitted with Open Architecture Computer (OAC)

This induction of the two aircrafts in the IAF helped in ending the three decades long wait of induction of a homemade aircraft in forces. India in 1970s conceptualised the idea of having an indigenous fighter aircraft but the actual work on the same was started in 1980s.