India marked a major milestone in indigenous aerospace capability on Friday as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited handed over three indigenously built platforms, the Dhruv-NG helicopter, LCA Tejas Trainer jets and the HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft, to the Indian Air Force and Pawan Hans Limited, asserting that the country is rapidly moving towards self-reliance in defence manufacturing.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, addressing the handover ceremony, said, "Today, we are witnessing three important achievements together. First, the indigenously designed and developed Dhruv-Next Generation Civil helicopter is being handed over after being granted Type Certification by the DGCA. Second, the final batch of the LCA Final Operational Clearance, that is, FOC Trainer, is being handed over to the Indian Air Force. And third, today we are handing over the first aircraft of the HTT-40 Basic Trainer series production to the Indian Air Force."
