Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday flew in the Tejas fighter aircraft from the HAL airport in Bengaluru, becoming the first defence minister to fly in the indigenously-built light combat aircraft (LCA). He was accompanied by Air Vice Marshal N Tiwari, who is also the Project Director, National Flight Test Centre, ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) in Bengaluru. A Defence Ministry official had said on Wednesday that the minister would be “taking a sortie” in order to boost the morale of officers who have been involved in the development of “indigenously-made Tejas”. “It will also boost the morale of IAF pilots who are flying these aircraft,” the official had said.
