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New Delhi: Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Tuesday removed the image of Lord Hanuman from the rear of the HLFT-42 aircraft model displayed at the Aero India 2023 event in Bengaluru.
This comes a day after HAL unveiled a scale model of the Hindustan Lead In Fighter Trainer (HLFT-42), which also featured a picture of Lord Hanuman on the vertical fin of the trainer.
The HLFT-42 aircraft is the successor to the first indigenous aircraft, the HAL Marut. Marut is another name for Pawan, or ‘Pawan’ as it is called in Hindi. Pawanputra was Lord Hanuman, hence the picture of the Lord was displayed on the model aircraft.
The HLFT-42 is a next generation supersonic trainer that will play a vital role in modern fighter aircraft training. The aircraft will bridge the gap between the Hawk-132 subsonic trainer and existing trainer aircraft such as the MiG-21, which are used to train pilots in supersonic technology.
It is equipped with state-of-the-art avionics such as Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA), Electronic Warfare (EW) suite, Infrared Search and Track (IRST) along with Fly By Wire Control (FBW) system.
Aero India 2023
Over 700 defense companies and delegates from 98 countries are participating in the five-day expo, officials said.
This edition of Aero India showcases the country as an emerging hub for manufacturing military aircraft, helicopters, military equipment and new age avionics.
He added that around 250 business-to-business agreements are expected to be signed in Aero India, which is estimated to unlock investments worth around Rs 75,000 crore.
Several aircraft of the Indian Air Force displayed their aerial prowess during the air show in the program organized on Monday.
The theme of Aero India is “Runway to a Billion Opportunities” and aims to showcase India’s growth and capabilities in the defense and aerospace sectors.
Officials said the focus of the event is to showcase indigenous equipment and technologies and partner with foreign companies in line with the government’s ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ vision.
