The Indian government is finally pressing ahead with work on an indigenous stealth fighter after a funding crunch stalled the project for several years.
The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)program is due to receive $2 billion in various increments over the next three years, with expectations the figure will grow.
The Indian air force hopes to begin taking deliveries of at least 150 of twin-engine, 20-metric-ton(44,000-lb) stealth jet toward the end of the decade.
India's Defense Research and Development Organization hopes to power the AMCA with a pair of indigenous Kaveri turbofans. The engines are based on the Sncema M88 Eco core. Program sources reveal that Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. has been asked to work on thrust-vectored-nozzle technologies, possibly in consultation with Russian industry.
The AMCA team is working to give the platform a cockpit with a panoramic active-matrix display as the centerpiece of its man-machine interface. Most switches, bezels and keypads will likely be placed with touch-screen interfaces and voice commands. Pilots who fly the AMCA will also likely have a helmet-mounted system that eliminates the need for a head-up display.
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