India conducts successful maiden flight test of Kaveri engine

India has successfully flight-tested the indigenously designed and developed Kaveri engine at the Gromov Flight Research Institute (GFRI) in Moscow, Russia, yesterday.

The engine, developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), was tested from take-off to landing and flew for a period of over one hour at an altitude of 6,000 metres, at a speed of 0.6 Mach in its maiden flight, an official release said today.

The engine's control, performance and health during the flight were found to be excellent, the release said, adding, "With this test, Kaveri engine has completed a major milestone in the development programme."

During the coming months the engine will undergo 50 to 60 more test flights to test its reliability, safety and airworthiness. These trials would pave the way for further flight trials of Kaveri engine with a fighter aircraft, it said.

The flying test bed trial was conducted with the Kaveri engine replacing one of the four engines of an existing IL-76 aircraft.

The IL-76 aircraft was modified with required instrumentation as well as integration of mechanical, electrical and fuel system for the trials.