Explained: Why HAL removed Lord Hanuman’s image from its trainer jet at Aero India 2023

The Aero India 2023 show took off on Monday at Bengaluru’s Yelahanka air force station with a big bang — Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the event. However, one day into the five-day exhibition, and it’s experiencing turbulence. A controversy has broken out over the much-talked about Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL) HLFT-42 aircraft model displayed at the show and the imagery on its tail. Confused what’s going on? We explain it all. Appearance and disappearance of Lord Hanuman’s image On Monday, there was big buzz at the Aero India 2023 show as HAL put up a full-scale model of its of Hindustan Lead in Fighter Trainer (HLFT)-42. Described as the ‘Next Gen Supersonic Trainer, this plane’s model had the unique tail art of the Lord Hanuman. According to HAL, the imagery was apt as it signifies everything that Hanuman signifies. “A great teacher, great strength, agility. It’s the son of the wind and all that.” The company added that they had decided to use Hanuman’s picture to display the power of the aircraft.

Group Captain HV Thakur speaking to News18 on the plane’s capability, said: “Definitely, this is modern but we are carrying some learnings from our old legacy.” Incidentally, the sticker on the tail of the HLFT-42 model also had the text: ‘The storm is coming’ written next to it. Also read: Aero India 2023: How airshows have evolved to become a great aviation event However, eyebrows were raised when the Lord Hanuman sticker wasn’t visible on the plane on Tuesday. As the image below clearly shows the model is missing the imagery on the tail, but the text — ‘the storm is coming’ — is still visible.

Since then, people have been speculating and discussing the disappearance of the Lord Hanuman imagery, prompting HAL chairman and managing director CB Anathakrishnan to react. Speaking to the media, CB Anathakrishnan said: “We had put Lord Hanuman’s picture on it to showcase its strength but after some deliberations, we decided to withdraw it,” adding, “There was no specific reason for putting the image there. Designers had come up with the image in order to show the prowess of the aircraft. We removed it because we wanted to continue the programme successfully. We do not want any sort of misinterpretations.” Significance of HLFT-42 HAL’s HLFT-42 is a supersonic jet trainer and is being touted as a game-changer, once it is inducted into service. The plane will be a single-engine fighter aircraft, made entirely of metal to cut costs, and when it is ready for production, it will probably be powered by the F404 engine or Kaveri engine. HAL has said that the trainer jet is aiming to prepare fighter pilots comprehensively for the fifth-generation aircraft. According to sources within the defence establishment, the HLFT-42 will be equipped with modern avionics like Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA), Electronic Warfare (EW) Suite, Infrared Search and Track (IRST) with Fly by Wire (FBW) control system. HAL test pilot Group Captain Thakur told Indian Express, “The need of this project is to train fighter pilots for fifth-generation aircraft in the field. When single-seater aircraft like LCA Mk II and AMCA (Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft) will get inducted, the training of the pilots should happen with an aircraft that meets those requirements. This will be the leading trainer aircraft of the 2030s for future aircraft.” He added that the project was conceived in 2017 and if all goes as planned, the trainer jet will be ready in two years’ time for use. The plane is believed to plug the gap between the subsonic jet training that currently takes place on Hawk-132 and the supersonic jet training that happens on an actual fighter like the MiG-21 . Presently, HAL has not given any formal date for the completion of the project, but buzz around the project has already been generated and it is one of the biggest attractions at the Aero India 2023 show too. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .