DRDO Revs Up Development of 91 kN Engine for LCA Tejas and Ghatak UCAV

Hold onto your hats, aviation aficionados, because India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is reportedly pushing the boundaries of jet engine technology with a potential 91 kilonewton (kN) powerhouse designed to propel the LCA Tejas fighter jet and Ghatak UCAV to new heights.

This ambitious project, an evolution of the existing Kaveri engine program, is set to transform India's indigenous fighter jet capabilities. A 91kN engine would catapult the Tejas and Ghatak into the league of top-tier fighter aircraft, delivering unparalleled speed, agility, and payload capacity.

While details are still under wraps, this development marks a significant leap forward in India's quest for self-reliance in military technology. The 91kN engine would rival some of the most powerful jet engines in the world, showcasing the DRDO's commitment to cutting-edge innovation.

This exciting news follows on the heels of other advancements in the Kaveri engine program, including the development of a 73kN variant with an afterburner for testing on older Tejas models and potentially powering the Ghatak UCAV.

With the potential 91kN engine, India is poised to revolutionize its aerospace industry and bolster its defense capabilities. While we eagerly await official confirmation and further details, this development signifies a major milestone for India's indigenous fighter jet program and reinforces the country's position as a rising power in aerospace technology.

 

[Shiva]

Hopefully this time, India will get engine before foreign country comes up with next level of higher thrust range engine.

 

[sas]

If this news is true it's indeed welcome news and I pray the endeavor achieves fruition at the earliest

 

[Sandeep]

India needs to continue developing and improving the Kaveri engine. We have certified the engine to produce about 50kn of thrust and it will definitely be used on the stealth UCAV Ghatak drone that's under development. We need to increase the thrust level and develop a afterburner before we can use it on the Tejas jets but we can't keep relying on foreign expensive imports even if we do get some partial technology transferred to us.

We are also developing the Kaveri Marine engine which has been showing good progress and it can power our small to medium ships. We need to invest more on developing critical engines for tanks, jets, ships etc. This is a area where we are weak at but it's a critical area where we need to become indigenous in.

 

[Sandeep]

Because the 46 kN engine is not developed yet. These are just DRDO lies to buy more time and keep GoI off its back for as long as possible.

So how is it possible that the engine has been fully tested and passed in Russia then? Are they lying?

 

[Sandeep]

In my opinion, whole approach is wrong!!!
Developing a 46kN dry thrust engine itself is a big achievement… why not they develop a drone based on this engine??? Why r they running behind more thrust engine??
France had M88 engine having similar thrust so they developed Rafale around this engine only… imagine if they run behind an engine having more thrust then Rafale will not be flying today!!!!
F16 a single engine fighter have similar thrust what double engine Rafale offers!!!
Iran have made thousands of drones based on whatever engine they were able to develop…
DRDO/ADA/HAL can easily develop a twin engine fighter using current Kaveri engine…. When u start using desi item, refinements automatically comes with time….

This 50kn Kaveri engine has passed all tests and is certified which will now be used for the stealth UCAV Ghatak drone. As they keep working and developing the engine it will improve in time.

 

[Akshat]

So how is it possible that the engine has been fully tested and passed in Russia then? Are they lying?

Of course they are. It’s DRDO. All they do is lie.

But in reality, DRDO hasn’t said even once that the engine has passed anything. Only news without any sources has been spread as rumors.

 

[Akshat]

This 50kn Kaveri engine has passed all tests and is certified which will now be used for the stealth UCAV Ghatak drone. As they keep working and developing the engine it will improve in time.

It has not passed anything. Just a block of metal that can't be used for anything.

 

[Ajath Shri]

India only developing ucav prototypes and it will go upto 2050. After that the ghatak ucav program will be scrapped. And we will buy uavs from iran.

Where did you get this information from ?

 

[SR]

So what stopping them to make mk1a , tedbf / orca with those engines,
Rafale is just 75kn engine
I think DRDO is lying to buy some time & secure jobs

 

[Sentoki]

The Kaveri program seems to have reached high technological maturity stage from all the news coming now.

For those that are familiar with stage gate process followed in Aerospace product development, the program seems to have reached gate 4 (testing & validation). GTRE now needs to focus on design optimization, testing and validation before launch.

At this stage, the key objectives has to weight reduction, increased reliability (enhanced TBO time) and design optimization for enhanced thrust output.

These efforts should now be put back in mission mode by GOI/MOD and drive this program to stage 5 quickly.

At current rates of Tejas MK1A build outs, the Kaveri engine program has enough time to start powering atleast last 2 squadrons of the new batch of 97 Mk1As that are to be ordered if the program is put back in mission mode and resources are prioritized.

The MOD/GOI should do that rather than wait for midlife engine refits which is another decade out.

 

[rtnguy]

Thrust is only 1 aspect. MTBO is the main parameter. Chinese have engines to generate thrust in excess of 180KN but their MTBOs is only 200 hours. We need an engine with Min MTBO of 3000+ hours for it to be viable replacement to GE F404 which frankly seems impossible since DRDO has barely scratched surface of afterburner technology after 4 decades+. Sad!

 

[AK S]

Of course they are. It’s DRDO. All they do is lie.

But in reality, DRDO hasn’t said even once that the engine has passed anything. Only news without any sources has been spread as rumors.

You want us to trust a French agent and not what my minister said on the floor of the house. Forget the the Russian, even your patron, Safran okayed it for limited-envelope flight test.

 

[AK S]

How is DRDO a hero in the missile department??? Nirbhay is a big zero. All variants of Nag, except Helina, are a big zero. No cruise missile till date. Astra 2 and 3 are nowhere to be seen after over a decade of development. No Manpad. No Rudram. No ALBM. DRDO is a big zero and a colossal failure in every single department. No exceptions at all.

He’d recommend Javelin, ATHOS and all sorts of foreign maal.

Chances of imports of your recommended products are very remote. Even Rafale is slowly fading away as we get closer to the first flight of MK2 and AMCA.

 

[AK S]

Another DRDO plan to keep the jobs secure for 3 more decades.

So you have any doubts about their job security.

It’s so much better to enable them so they do a better job.

 

[kumar]

Plans are good. But first, serious investment needs to be done in FTB and high altitude test facility. Critical for doing iterative development and ironing out problems in the development phase.

 

[Akshat]

So you have any doubts about their job security.

It’s so much better to enable them so they do a better job.

Competition brings out the best, not job security. No socialist nation has ever sustained itself for long.

 

[Akshat]

He’d recommend Javelin, ATHOS and all sorts of foreign maal.

Chances of imports of your recommended products are very remote. Even Rafale is slowly fading away as we get closer to the first flight of MK2 and AMCA.

Well MoD is still going ahead with MRFA. So chances of whichever plane wins are still very very strong.

And again, I never recommended any of those products. I recommend whatever can clear the trials and can be produced. Great if it’s Indian, else import if need be.

 

[Akshat]

You want us to trust a French agent and not what my minister said on the floor of the house. Forget the the Russian, even your patron, Safran okayed it for limited-envelope flight test.

Well which minister has ever said in the floor that Kaveri is available to be used for anything today?

As for Safran, please don’t twist their words. They said it can be used ‘with M88’s core’.

 

[Anant]

France is our dependable strategic partner, we should ink deal with them allowing Saffran to develop a 90+ KN Kavari engine for LCA & AF-MK-II as well as super Shakti engine for our medium class Helicopter/ASW and NMRH helicopters !

They aren't running a charity, you know. They'll happily develop an engine if you pay them, but you won't get any IPR. A joint development project is what is needed.

 

[Anant]

Use GE414 for tejas mk1A and more than 120kN engine with the help of UK or France Safran shall be used for tejas mk2 and Amca mk1 and Amca 2
Kaveri twin engine can be planned for tejas mk1A or mk2

You do realise that you can't just add a second engine to an existing design without essentially redesigning the whole aircraft, right?