Aero India Jottings: Rajnath's roar, mega Tejas deal and more

Short takes from the Aero India airshow, which gets underway in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Asianet Newsable's Anish Singh gets us the latest on what happening on ground zero and the skies over Yelahanka Air Force Station.

In his indirect references to ongoing border standoff with China in eastern Ladakh, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said unrelenting spirits of soldiers led to defending the sovereignty of the country. 
 

The Chinese troops have tried to unilaterally change the status quo in easter Ladakh in early May and since then the forces of two countries are facing with each other. 
 

The situation further aggravated and led to a violent clash in the Galwan valley on June 15. In the clash, 20 Indian soldiers were killed while China also suffered massive casualties but they have yet not revealed the number. 
 

"I have no hesitation in saying that our robust stance, immediate and calibrated response and the unrelenting spirit of the soldiers on the borders led to stabilisation of the situation and we showed our resolve to defend the sovereignty and integrity of our country," Rajnath said during the curtain-raiser press conference of Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru.

LCA Tejas

Indian Air Force and the State-owned aircraft-maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will sign a mega-deal worth Rs 48,000 crore for supply of 73 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk-1A and 10 LCA Tejas Mk-1 trainer jets. 
 

HAL CMD R Madhavan said, “The first aircraft will be delivered within 36 months from the date of signing the contract. While all the aircraft will be supplied to IAF in 9 years.”
 

The aircraft is an indigenously designed, developed and manufactured state-of-the-art modern 4+ generation fighter aircraft. 
 

It is equipped with critical operational capabilities of Beyond Visual Range (BVR) Missile, Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite, Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar and Air to Air Refuelling (AAR).

Indian Ocean Region defence ministers' conclave 
 

The defence ministers' conclave will take place on February 4, wherein over 25 ministers and delegates would attend the event, physical and virtual. The invitation was sent to 28 countries of which 18 will attend in person while the defence ministers of eight countries will participate through virtual mode. 
 

Iran's defence minister Brig Gen Amir Hatami will also be present in the conclave. 
 

During the meeting, the defence ministers will discuss the strategic and non-strategic issues, including HADR. The conclave assumes significance amidst Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean Region where India has been a traditional net security provider. 

13th edition of Aero India Exhibition 
 

A total of 601 exhibitors, including 523 Indian exhibitors and 78 foreign exhibitors from 14 countries, are taking part in Aero India show this year.
 

Last time, 403 exhibitors had participated in Aero India, in which 165 were foreign companies while 238 were domestic exhibitors. 
 

There are over 284 virtual exhibitors taking part this year. In its 13th edition, Aero India offers a unique platform to the international aviation sector to bolster business.