BarfBag From India, joined Mar 2001, 2050 posts, RR: 6 Reply 3, posted (8 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 1056 times:
LCA has completed close to 250 test flights spread over two demonstrators (TD1 and TD2) and the first prototype (PV1). The first eight limited series production LCAs are slated for IAF induction in 2006-07 .
Gamps From United States of America, joined Jul 2003, 469 posts, RR: 1 Reply 4, posted (8 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 997 times:
Indianguy From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 5, posted (8 years 11 months 3 weeks 4 days 19 hours ago) and read 933 times:
One look this ugly little fuck is enough to tell u why India must keep out of aircraft manufacture! This programme was first conceived in 1983, first put to paper in the late 80's (under Satish Dhawan, hence the reg XSD), and finally flies in 2004, and the best they could do is THIS?
The director who was interviewed said it would take another FIVE years of flight testing for it to be approved! FIVE years! At this rate, i think it would be better we put our money on license producing foreign designs like the ATR.
BarfBag From India, joined Mar 2001, 2050 posts, RR: 6 Reply 6, posted (8 years 11 months 3 weeks 4 days 7 hours ago) and read 835 times:
One look this ugly little fuck is enough to tell u why India must keep out of aircraft manufacture!
By that logic one could argue that India should stay out of the Miss Universe contest because our contestant this year looks worse than the average babe on Bangalore's Brigade Road
Also, the Saras project began in 1991(http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-05/29/content_1497544.htm), and was stalled in the mid 90s after its original Russian collaborator withdrew in the aftermath of financial crunches following the implosion of the USSR. The 1998 nuclear tests and the ban implosed on NAL as a result, further delayed the project.
I would completely disagree that India should stick to licence production. Saras is merely the first step. One cannot expect a cash-strapped sanction-hit research lab to come out with a magnum opus on the first try. The Saras is to the civilian aerospace sector what the LCA is to the defence sector. The experience gained out of building a plane from scratch will be invaluable to the country's aerospace industry. Personally I think its a great design for a light turboprop; its just the miserable jaundiced yellow paint that makes me cringe.
High technology is an area India must progressively master in various fields. We moan about technology denial by the west, but still crib about efforts to master the technology locally. IMHO there is no reason why it should be left out in favour of any other prerogative the country might have, and most certainly not because people didn't like the way the first aircraft looked like. In the past we showed technological sanctions on us to be worthless in some areas, e.g. supercomputers which we built ourselves. Saras, LCA etc just widen our ability to ride out such hurdles.
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