Bangalore-headquartered National Aerospace Laboratories is taking the lead role in development of a regional civil aircraft in India, with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Aeronautical Development Agency and Defence Research and Development Organisation”s LCA (Light Combat Aircraft) project team being key part of it.
The product is expected to have a range of 1300 miles and seat 90 passengers. While structure, aerodynamics, configuration, design, system integration and avionics for the aircraft would be Indian, the team will install an imported engine.
Former head of the Indian Space Research Organisation, G Madhavan Nair, leads the project, “We have tapped experienced people from almost who”s who in the aerospace here. Also, we are trying to see whether we can induce private industries come into it. So, within a month, we will be putting out an advertisement calling for interested (private) people to register with us,” he said.
The regional transport aircraft program aims at tapping the growing domestic demand for air travel by building a plane that can land on shorter runways—potentially opening up over 300 runways and airstrips across India—and which is better suited to Indian conditions, besides being economical to own and operate.
India’s efforts to develop a military aircraft, the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) , have been plagued by long delays over decades. Earlier this year, General Electric won the right to supply 99 engines for the Tejas as it rolled out over the next several years. Nair’s stellar reputation and India’s bolstered confidence may accelerate the civil aircraft plan; it will be interesting to watch this story unfold.
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
