The fighting power of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas has been sharpened with the aircraft being equipped with an advanced electronic warfare suite (EW suite).

The system was flight tested today in Bengaluru for the first time onboard the Tejas-PV1 combat aircraft, according to an announcement by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official.

The Suite has been developed by Defence Avionics Research Establishment (DARE), a lab specialising in avionics and electronic warfare systems for combat aircrafts.

In addition to the Radar Warner, the EW suite tested today is also equipped with Jammer. It gives the pilot an additional capability of nullifying the effect of detected Radar threat by appropriate mode of jamming. Existing EW systems fitted on various combat aircrafts are basic EW equipment known as Radar Warner Receiver to provide warning to the aircraft pilot in case of detection of a Radar threat.

After obtaining due flight clearances and certification, the first flight sortie of LCA PV1 with the EW equipment operational, took place today. The equipment was noted to be detecting Radar signals operating in and around the flight path.

Avinash Chander, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri, Secretary Department of Def. R&D & DG, DRDO said "This warfare suite adds an important capability to our LCA."

J Manjula, Director DARE said "LCA is the first fighter aircraft of India fitted with a radar warner and jammer equipment. It has capability for both radar warning and jamming using a Unified EW Technology. Over the coming few months, ADA and DARE will be scheduling further sorties to evaluate the system in various signal scenarios".