Air Force gives RFP for basic trainer HTT40 to HAL

State-run aerospace behemoth Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) on Thursday said it has received a Request for Proposal (RFP) from the Indian Air Force for basic trainer HTT-40.

The documents were handed over to HAL CMD R Madhavan, by Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, Deputy Chief of the Air Staff (DCAS) and DG (Acquisition), Ministry of Defence V L Kantha Rao, at the ongoing Aero India 2021.

The certification will be given against the Preliminary Services Qualitative Requirements (PSQR) and the production will take place at HALs two manufacturing units at Bengaluru and Nashik, the company said.

'The RFP has come within six years from the first flight of HAL which is the shortest time-line in the aircraft industry,' it said.

The trainer will have more than 60 per cent indigenous content and is supported by agencies such as Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC), Regional Director Aeronautical Quality Assurance (RDAQA), and Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE) and others, it added.

"We will be making this HTT-40 initially from Bengaluru where it was designed, later it will go to Nasik for series production. Basically it will start with 70 aircraft, we are looking at a total number of 106," Madhavan told reporters in response to a question.

Indigenously designed and developed by HAL, HTT-40 would be used for basic flight training, aerobatics, instrument flying and close formation flights, whereas its secondary roles would include navigation and night flying.

The prototypes of HTT-40 have demonstrated stall and spin capabilities during tests and trials, HAL said, adding, hot refuelling has also been successfully demonstrated on the aircraft, while keeping the engine running.

It said the aircraft can be flown continuously for six hours with an additional oxygen cylinder.