abstract
| - The HAL Tejas (Sanskrit: तेजस् "Radiant",is a lightweight multirole jet fighter developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). It is a tailless, compound delta wing design powered by a single engine. It came from the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme, which was begun in the 1980s to replace India's ageing MiG-21 fighters. Later the LCA was officially named "Tejas" by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The Tejas has the delta wing configuration, with no tailplanes or foreplanes, features a single vertical fin. It integrates technologies such as relaxed static stability, fly-by-wire flight control system, advanced digital cockpit, multi-mode radar, integrated digital avionics system, advanced composite material structures and a flat rated engine. The IAF is reported to have a requirement for 200 single-seat and 20 two-seat conversion trainers, while the Indian Navy may order up to 40 single-seaters to replace its Sea Harrier FRS.51 and Harrier T.60. During its sea level flight trials off Goa, Tejas notched a speed of over 1,350 km per hour, thus becoming the second supersonic fighter manufactured indigenously by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited after the HAL Marut. The Tejas was cleared in January 2011 for use by Indian Air Force pilots.
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