With India’s home-built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) — the Tejas — flying successfully through its testing process, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has now signed up for an indigenous Medium Combat Aircraft (MCA). Within days, the IAF and a team of aircraft designers will formally set up a joint committee to frame the specifications for India’s own MCA, which will be built largely in Bangalore.
The MCA’s design team will centre on the agencies that have built the LCA: the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA); the National Aeronautics Laboratory (NAL); Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL); and a host of Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) laboratories that will develop futuristic sensors and systems for the MCA.
The director of ADA, Dr PS Subramaniam, confirmed to Business Standard, “The joint committee is likely to be formed within two or three weeks. This committee will finalise what will go into the MCA, as well as the budget and development schedule.”
According to Dr Subramaniam, the programme will aim to develop the MCA and build five to six prototypes at a cost of Rs 5,000 crore. That is approximately the same amount that has gone into the LCA programme.
With this, Indian aeronautical designers will be working in all the fighter categories. In the light fighter category (10-11 tonnes), the Tejas LCA is expected to get operational clearance in 2011; the MCA will be India’s first foray into the medium fighter category (14-15 tonnes); and in the heavy fighter category (20 tonnes plus), currently ruled by the Russian Sukhoi-30MKI, Indian designers plan to partner their Russian counterparts in developing the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA).
Interestingly, the decision to develop an indigenous MCA comes alongside the overseas procurement of 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) for an estimated Rs 50,000 crore. Senior IAF planners point out that the MMRCA procurement is unavoidable for replacing the MiG-29s and Mirage-2000s that will become obsolete while the MCA is still being developed.
By 2020, when the IAF’s current fleet would have been largely phased out, MoD planners forecast a requirement for at least 250 medium fighters. This has raised hopes amongst the MMRCA contenders (the US F/A-18 and F-16, Russia’s Mig-35; the Eurofighter Typhoon; and the Swedish Gripen) that the winner could end up supplying twice as many fighters as the current tender. But a successful Indian MCA programme would cap the MMRCA procurement at 126 fighters. After that, the MCA production will kick in.
The MCA designers plan to pursue technologies superior to anything currently on offer. The ADA director points out, “None of the MMRCA contenders will be state-of-the-art in 2015-2017. But the MCA will; it will incorporate the technologies of the future, which currently feature only on the US Air Force’s F-22 Raptor.”
India’s aeronautical designers see the MCA programme as crucial for taking forward the expertise that has been painstakingly accumulated in the Tejas LCA programme. The IAF is in agreement; and the Rama Rao Committee, set up for restructuring the DRDO, has recommended that programmes must be created to provide continuity for designers.
Says a senior MoD official: “With great difficulty we have built up a team that can design a complete combat aircraft. After a couple of years, when the LCA goes into production, there will be no design work left. Without another aircraft programme to work on, we will lose this team, having attained this level.”
I want to say India is having so talented guys from IITs,IISC,IISER,NISER,IIST etc , then why cant we produce MCA fully indiginious ,with every part developed & designed in INDIA. It would be great if we produce fully indiginious & an aircraft with inovative technology not heir for other but far more advance than any other in world.
It will be great if it is not like F-22 Raptor but much more advance than F-22 & world will take more 20 yrs to devlop that kind of air craft.
I sincearly agree with you. Pleople who don't know any thing about technology, keep on commenting about LCA or any thing. If we don't invest today you will loose tomorrow. I am happy that Indian government has taken this decession. This is an investment for future.
Jai Hind
it took USA more than 15 years to build the F 22 despite being a super power so even if it takes INDIA 10 years to make the MCA it would be a reasonable effort despite being a third world nation.
also INDIA will get its first 5 gen jet within a couple of years so it can help in making the MCA.
and as far as vulnerability is concerned pakistani F 16's can shoot down MiG 21's but they rarely hold thier own against the MiG 29's.
and as far as buying technology is concerned INDIA does not beg the US for military aid and has the capacity to buy whatever it wants.
JACK OF ALL MASTER OF NONE. This is what India is. They have not even mastered the Tejas LCA and now they want to jump into MCA? Same case with missiles,Aircraftcarriers,submarines,tanks,destroyers,helicopters......the list goes on and on. Today they do not have any weapon tested and tried in the actual theatre of war. In case of a real war if they are at all 100% reliable for the defence of the country. India is in the most vulnerable position in security today compared to China and even to some extent Pakistan. They cannot produce the heart(the engines) which moves everything. They have to depend on US,Russia,France etc... to provide the most important parts of these inventory. A war can be won or lost due to the availability of spare parts. Foreign nations can blackmail,control and dictate the terms and course of the war upon their influence. There is no independence without this ,it is a myth.India should be busy producing the very first componant.....Engines, Turbines !!!!!!!!
Posted by: Devesh
February 10 , 2010, 16:09 IST
No doubt, India has to master the technologies of Engine design. However, the efforts to develop the complete spectrum of equipments and machines is a part of the whole process. Engines and Turbines are not designed in isolation. They are always designed and developed in conjunction with the complete armour. Secondly, scientific endeavours often flourish in global collaborations. I appreciate India's efforts to join hands with other nations in technological research and development.
I want to congratulate India and its people for developing such a fighter, actually as a Brazilian citizenship, I envy the courage of India's Government. We are in a bid to buy around 36 planes, the competitors are F-18 Super Hornet, Rafalle and Gripen, but I doubt if it will go on once the deal is on the table since 1998. We're said that Brazil was going to partner with Russia and India the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) project, but it was only a dream for us, nothing happened. Well, good luck for India and its people, personally, I like your country too much
Why cannot India get the LCA perfected quickly,get the induction time forward,and start selling to the developnig countries? This way it could generate extra money in research and production of MCA quickly without wasting years of precious time.The article does not mention it's compatability with Chinese J10 &J11 China is already producing it's own J10 and J11 combat aircrafts and also selling them to Pakistan.India seems to waste so much time in producing indegenous products that it is falling behind it's defence weaponary. What ever India has is all a mismash of bits and bobs of no quality substance and realiability.Till India starts producing the very heart and substance which is the Engines of Aircrafts everything is in the control of the super powers.India wants to dabble with everything without perfection.
at last the government has taken the initiative of producing an indiginious medium combact aircraft(MCA),i think that this is the best solution for an long term procurement of aircraft,i hope that the MCA will roll out on time and set a new record in the history of medium combact aircrafts.my best wishes for the designer teams JAI HIND
New plans to waste indian money , we have the tech of su-30/ mig series / Jaguar darin3/LCA , normally new generation fighter will be produced from old version only . for MCA they have planned to waste money and another 10 to 15 years of time.even though if they waste this much , mca will have foreign - engine , radar , weapons , helmet mounted sight /flight & fire control system and goes on . India is going to get licensed with full TOT in MMRCA deals and Tech from 5th generation from russia , so india can utilize these technology to make new medium weight fighter. their is no point of wasting 5000 cr in the name of MCA .
Posted by: Indian
May 03 , 2009, 08:35 IST
wow what a strategy...we need people like to build the country.
Posted by: tejas
May 02 , 2009, 22:00 IST
Its very easy to criticize anything without having something in it u itself. Its not so easy to develop an aircraft without having any help from out side.Understand the peculiarity in it, hope u understand well.
Posted by: vishal
May 02 , 2009, 15:50 IST
it is not an waste of money but an INVESTMENT for making india independent from the aircraft manufacturing countries in the world.no country can become an super power if they do not have an indiginious capability to build their defence arsenel.
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