The Indian defense industry plans to conduct flight tests of its GTX-35VS Kaveri aircraft engine. russian Su-30MKI fighters are planned to serve as the platform for this, drawing inspiration from the F-22's development history.
According to Republic World, this decision is being promoted by the Indian Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE), which is working on the project. This should provide practical experience, since all previous tests were conducted solely under laboratory conditions.
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Although development of the Kaveri engine for the Tejas has been ongoing since the 1980s, it fails to deliver enough power for fighter jets and is now being repurposed for the Ghatak UAV.
In other words, an engine unfit for a combat aircraft is intended to be tested on a combat aircraft. This is despite the fact that the AL-31 engine fitted on the Su-30MKI generates approximately 88 kN of thrust, compared to just 49–51 kN for the Kaveri. At the same time, it should be noted that the Kaveri is closer in performance to the American F404 engine, which produces 47 kN of thrust.
Challenges may emerge in integrating these components, bringing significant technical risks, as well as in their later operation and flight safety. On the other hand, while testing on an existing platform makes sense, the Tejas might be a more suitable choice.
It should be noted that India is currently seeking opportunities to modernize its Su-30MKI aircraft, which includes replacing their engines. Although russia is offering its Su-57 and Su-35S, the Indian Air Force has already experienced many maintenance problems since 2014 due to sanctions against russia.
In the case of the F-22, the Pratt & Whitney F119 engines underwent flight tests on a dedicated Boeing 747SP, designed for such tasks, before installation on fighter jets. This is a much safer and simpler approach.
At the same time, India does not have its own aircraft for testing, so using the existing platform makes sense. However, the sheer number of technical challenges that must be overcome raises serious questions about the project.
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