IAF chief RKS Bhadauria takes Tejas sortie after operationalising 'Flying bullets'; WATCH

Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhauria on Wednesday flew Light Combat Aircraft Tejas fighter with 45 Squron at Air Force Station Sulur. He flew single-seater LCA. He is on a visit to Station in Tamil Nu to operationalise . 18 Squron, 'Flying Bullets', of air force.

IAF chief flies single-seater LCA

Squron will be equipped with LCA Tejas FOC Aircraft and will be second IAF squron to fly LCA Tejas. Formed on April 15, 1965, with motto 'Teevra aur Nirbhaya' meaning 'Swift and Fearless', Squron was flying MiG 27 aircraft before it got number plated on April 15, 2016.

Squron was resurrected on April 1 this year at Sulur. It actively participated in 1971 war with Pakistan and was decorated with highest gallantry award 'Param Vir Chakra' awarded to Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon posthumously. It earned sobriquet of 'Defenders of Kashmir Valley' by being first to land and operate from Srinagar. Squron was presented with President's Standard in vember 2015, re a statement.

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Tejas is an indigeus fourth generation tailless compound delta-wing aircraft. It is equipped with a fly-by-wire flight control system, integrated digital avionics, multimode rar and its structure is me out of composite material. It is lightest and smallest in its group of fourth-generation supersonic combat aircraft.

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It is developed by Aeronautical Development ncy and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.  Indian Air Force has alrey placed an order for 40 Tejas aircraft and is likely to seal a contract very soon with HAL for ar 83 aircraft at a cost of around Rs 38,000 crore.

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(With ncy inputs)