India plans to design, build medium combat aircraft
Afp, Bangalore
India plans to design and develop a medium-combat aircraft at a cost of up to 2.27 billion dollars as it seeks to strengthen its military manufacturing prowess, a senior official said yesterday. The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is in talks with European, US and Russian companies interested in collaborating on the project, said M. Natarajan, the head of research and development at the agency. The medium-combat aircraft, or MCA, will be a twin-engine plane with stealth capabilities and may take 15 years to develop, Natarajan told reporters at the Bangalore air show. "We see the potential to build 200 to 300 MCAs," said Natarajan who is also scientific advisor to the defence minister. "You will see economic benefits over the lifecycle of the programme."
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