DRDO showcases made in India weapon systems at Tarang Shakti exercise

SULUR (Tamil Nadu): The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Tuesday showcased its multiple made-in-India weapon systems at the ongoing Tarang Shakti exercise at Tamil Nadu’s Sulur.

Chairperson of DRDO, Samir V Kamat, pointed out that the Tarang Shakti exercise of the Indian Air Force (IAF) is an opportunity for the DRDO to showcase domestic weapons. “Tarang Shakti exercise of the Air Force is a very good example of all domestic products that we are developing and the display of those products gives confidence to all our countrymen that the Air Force is fully capable of saving the country when the need arises”, he said.

When asked about the AMCA fighter jet, which is developed by DRDO, he said, “AMCA is the 5.5 generation fighter, it’s a stealth aircraft, we have just started the development project, design is now complete and we hope to complete our development trials by 2034 and it should get inducted by 2035”.

#WATCH | DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) showcasing its multiple Made-in-India weapon systems at the Tarang Shakti exercise being held at Sulur, Tamil Nadu.

(Video: DRDO) pic.twitter.com/CxIAR5KBcy

— ANI (@ANI) August 13, 2024

He further stated that our country will become Atmanirbhar in defence products soon. “This is truly a world-class fighter. Very few countries operate stealth aircraft and India will be one of the few countries to develop the stealth aircraft. We are displaying some of our products which are required by the Air Force, very hopeful that these products will inducted into service and our country will become Atmanirbhar very soon. It is going to be a very proud moment when the development is complete”, he said.

On the occasion, Chief of German Air Force Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz said, “It was a great experience flying together with the Indian Air Force and doing together with the Spanish Air Force and French Air Force”.

Reacting to the interception by LCA Tejas fighter flown by Air Marshal A P Singh, he said, “It was overwhelming”. “The hospitality in this country is amazing”, he added.

On the multinational air exercise ‘Tarang Shakti 2024’, Brigadier General Guillaume Thomas of the French Air Force said, “It was a brilliant exercise organised by the Indian Air Force. I was very pleased to see the professionalism of the Indian Air Force. We were very happy to be able to fly alongside the Indian aircraft such as Tejas. Our pilots were able to fly on board ‘Tejas'”.

Earlier at the beginning of the Tarang exercise, homegrown LCA Tejas fighter, flown by Air Marshal A P Singh, intercepted German, French and Spanish contingents taking part in the war games. The Royal Air Force is also taking part in the air exercises with the Indian Air Force.

On August 6, The Indian Air Force began its first-ever multinational exercise on its soil ‘Tarang Shakti 2024’ in Sulur, Tamil Nadu. It’s the first phase of Tarang Shakti continuing in Sulur, Tamil Nadu, from August 6 to 14, and the second will be in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, from August 29 to September 14.

The Chief of the Indian Air Force participated on the first day of the aerial exercise along with his German counterpart Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz. Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari greeted and welcomed Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz, the commander of the German Air Force, along with his team.

Indian Air Force’s LCA Tejas, Mirage 2000 and Rafale jets are taking part in this mega exercise which aims to strengthen strategic relationships with “our friends from the international community”.

Earlier today, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), on Tuesday, successfully test-fired the Made-in-India Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MP-ATGM) at the field firing range in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, said DRDO officials. (ANI)