Home grown Tejas aircraft given final operational clearance

Signalling its combat readiness, India's Light Combat Aircraft Tejas MK I was Wednesday given the Final Operational Clearance (FOC).

The formal declaration of FOC of the aircraft was made by the Secretary Defence R&D and Chairman, Defence Research and Development Organisation, G Satheesh Reddy.

The handing over of the FOC Certificate and Release to Service Document (RSD) to the Chief of Air Staff was done on the sidelines of the Aero India air show here in the presence of the Defence Secretary, HAL chairman and chief of CEMILAC (Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification), among others.

An official release said FOC involves addition of key capabilities to the Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) aircraft, which in main are Beyond Visual Range Missile capabilities, Air-to-Air Refuelling, Air-to-Ground FOC earmarked weapons and general flight envelope expansion.

The RSD provides the capabilities, features and technologies that FOC standard Aircraft will have on induction into the IAF, it said.

The FOC standard Aircraft drawings have already been handed over to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to start production after incorporating key changes over the IOC standard Aircraft, the release said.

Congratulating all the organisations involved in the Tejas project, Reddy said "This is the best ever moment for any aeronautical engineers and a landmark day for the country's scientists, industry and the air force."