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HAL Tejas AF MWF (Medium Weight Fighter )

2027 MODERN AIRCRAFT FUTURE FLIGHT

History

In February 2019, the Aviation Development Authority of India (ADA) presented a mock-up of the Tejas AF Mk. 2 "Medium Fighter" (MWF) at the Airshow India 2019 as a potential for India's existing Mirage 2000 strike fleet Successor fighter Luftwaffe (described in detail elsewhere on this site).

At its core, the Tejas AF Mk.2 is a direct evolution of the original Tejas multirole fighter series (detailed elsewhere on this site), with changes to better fit the airframe for strike-oriented roles.

Major physical changes to the aircraft include a slightly longer fuselage and wider wingspan, and the addition of a canard nose to improve control and improve handling at different angles of attack. Much of the original Tejas shape will be retained, including its single vertical tail, delta wing main plane and side-mounted air intakes that draw into the single-engine unit. The proposed engine is a General Electric GE-F414-INS6 CNC Afterburner Turbofan.

These changes will result in the aircraft being heavier than Tejas' standard product.

When complete, the aircraft will carry an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar in the nose with full IRST (Infrared Search and Track) capability. Additionally, a Missile Approach Warning System (MAWS) will be included in the design to improve survivability.

For now, the aircraft's weapons carrying capacity will be increased by 85 percent, which will significantly expand the product's ammunition options. Weapons options will include India's current mix of types such as Air-to-Surface Missiles (ASM), Air-to-Air Missiles (AAM), conventional and precision-guided drop bombs, rocket pods and more.

In addition, various mission pods will be carried to improve targeting, tracking and attack capabilities.

This article will be revised as more information about the product becomes available.

Specification

Basic

Year:

2027

Status:

Under development

Staff:

Production

[0 units]:

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) - India

Roles

- Fighter

- Intercept

- Ground Attack

Dimensions

Length:

47.90 ft (14.6 m)

Width:

8.5m

Height:

14.44 ft (4.4 m)

Weight

Curb Weight:

19,842 lb (9,000 kg)

MTOW:

17,500 kg

(difference: +18,739 pt)

Performance

1 x General Electric GE F414-INS6 FADEC afterburner turbofan producing 20,000 lbs to 30,000 lbs of thrust with reheat.

Performance

Maximum Speed:

1,429 mph (2,300 km/h; 1,242 knots)

Service Limit:

52,493 ft (16,000 m; 9.94 mi)

Maximum range:

1,243 miles (2,000 km; 1,080 nautical miles)

Armor

Default:

1 x 23mm GSh-23 double barrel inner gun.

Optional:

Air-to-air (short, medium, and long-range), air-to-surface, laser-guided, and conventional throwing/launching weapons as needed. External fuel and LITENING targeting pods can replace some weapon systems on some hardpoints.

Weapon options also include missile pods, anti-radiation missiles, anti-ship missiles, laser-guided bombs, fuel-air explosives (FAE), and cluster bombs.