The Made-In-India Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas would compete against the Russian Yak-130 for a potential acquisition by the Malaysian Air Force, Defence World has reported.

Both the fighters have been invited by the Malaysian authorities to participate in the Langkawi International Exhibition this March.

Both the aircraft would be part of static and flying displays where they would be evaluated by Malaysian officials as part of initial procurement procedures. It has also been reported that the Chinese JF-17 Thunder and South Korean FA-50 may be vying for the contract.

Tejas’s AESA radar and advanced cache of weapons like the Brahmos NG Cruise missile and air-to-air, air-to-ground weapons put it at an advantage over its Russian counterpart.

It was earlier reported that the UAE too had expressed interest in the now combat cleared Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) built fighter. Sri Lanka, Egypt and Singapore have also shown interest in the fighter in the past.

The IAF had in December 2017 placed orders for 83 Tejas fighter jets, taking the total order of indigenous fighters to 123 aircraft.