BENGALURU: Buoyed by the final operational clearance (FOC) to its Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas by the military aviation regulator Cemilac, state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is ramping up production to deliver 16 of them for the Indian Air Force (IAF) operational fleet by this year-end, a top official said on Thursday.
“We plan to deliver 16 LCAs to the IAF in the FOC configuration by this year-end and remaining four next year as we have increased the production capacity with an upfront investment of Rs 1,380 crore in our Bengaluru complex,” HAL Chairman R. Madhavan told IANS here at the Aero India air show.
As partner in co-developing and manufacturing the combat fighter, the city-based defence behemoth has already delivered to the IAF 16 Tejas in the Initial Operation Clearance (IOC) configuration.
