LCA Tejas versus Rafale fighter jet and Russia’s Sukhoi

Salient Features of TEJAS

The Light Combat Aircraft Tejas is only India’s second indigenous fighter jet after the HF 24 Marut that was designed in 1950. Its salient features:

• It is world’s smallest and light weight combat aircraft.
• It is designed to play multi-role for the Indian Air Force and serves multiple missions through a single seat.
• Its structure consists of a delta wing configuration and a single vertical fin.
• The materials used for its construction are aluminium-lithium alloys, titanium and carbon-fibre comnposites.
• It incorporates state of art technologies like static stability, advanced digital cockpit, multi-mode radar and advanced composite material structures.
• The avionics system has been incorporated to enhance its performance as an effective weapon platform.
• The HOTAS controls reduce pilot workload.

Difference between Rafale Fighter Jet and LCA Tejas

The LCA Tejas is claimed to have the potential to compete with the Rafale Fighter Jet of France in all respects. However, some of the major differences are:

• Load capacity-While the Rafale fighter jet can carry a weight of nine ton missile, the TEJAS on the other hand, can carry only 3.5 ton missile.
• Running capacity-While the Rafale can travel a distance of 900 kms the TEJAS can only travel 450 kms.

However, these shortcomings are being worked at to bring its capacity at par with Rafale.

Difference between Russia’s Sukhoi and LCA Tejas

• Structure-While Sukhoi of Russia is a twin engine aircraft, Tejas is only a single engine aircraft.
• Composition-Tejas has a better composition of materials than Sukhoi. While Sukhoi is made up of aluminium alloys, the Tejas is made up of aluminium-lithium alloys.
• Speed-While the Sukhoi has a speed of Mach 1.9, Tejas has a maximum speed of Mach 1.8.
• Type of engine-While Sukhoi has Saturn AL-31, Tejas has General Electric F404.
• Weight-Tejas being a light weight aircraft weighs 14,330 lbs while Sukhoi weighs 40,570 lbs.