Upgraded, More Potent Tejas Mark II To Be Rolled Out Next Year Says HAL Chief R Madhavan; High-Speed Trials From 2023

In a major development, the Chairman and Managing Director of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) R Madhavan has stated that a more potent version of the indigenous Tejas multirole combat jet will be rolled out next year and its first high-speed trials will start in 2023, reports Zee Business.

The upcoming fighter jet would feature a much powerful engine, greater load carrying capability, next-generation electronic warfare system and an array of superior avionics.

Madhavan informed that the the structural package and other work on the Tejas Mark II is going on smoothly and its production will likely commence somewhere around 2025.

The upgraded version will have a bigger fuselage, longer range, better maintainability, greater load carrying capability, much stronger engine power and superior net-centric warfare systems and will be much superior than Tejas Mark-IA, 73 of which are being procured by the Indian Air Force from the HAL under a Rs 48,000 crore deal that was approved by the government on 13 January.

"Tejas Mark II is likely to roll out by August-September of 2022 after that the first flight will take some time. The first high-speed trial of the jet will start in 2023 and we expect the production to start somewhere around 2025," Madhavan told PTI.

Madhavan, however, did not give a direct reply about the weapon package for Tejas Mark and said it will be decided at a later stage depending on requirement and changing dynamics.

Tejas is a single engine and highly agile multi-role supersonic fighter manufactured by the state-run HAL. The LCA-Tejas is going to be the backbone of the IAF fighter fleet in the years to come. LCA-Tejas incorporates a large number of new technologies many of which were never attempted in India. The indigenous content of LCA-Tejas is 50 per cent in the Mk1A variant which will be enhanced to 60 per cent.