Thursday, May 24, 2012

Naval Version of LCA Makes First Flight Video




India on April 27 conducted the first flight of the naval version of its Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

The 20-min. naval prototype (NP-1) test sortie took place over Bengaluru and was flown by Air Commodore T.A. Maolankar and co-pilot Wing Commander Maltesh Prabhu. The aircraft executed various maneuvers, including low-speed handling and close formation flying at slow speed with another aircraft, a defense ministry official says.

The LCA is expected to replace the Indian navy's aging fleet of British-built Sea Harriers and complement its fleet of MiG-29 carrier aircraft. The aircraft is the second short-takeoff-but-arrested-recovery (stobar) fighter in the world along with the Russian deck-based aircraft, and will be the only carrier-borne fighter in the light category.