General Awareness Questions

May 23, 2016 ISRO successfully flight-tested India’s first winged body aerospace vehicle operating in hypersonic flight regime. In this experimental mission, the HS9 solid rocket booster carrying RLV-TD lifted off from the First Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikotaat 07:00 hr IST. After a successful flight of 91.1second, HS9 burn out occurred, following which both HS9 and RLV-TD mounted on its top coasted to a height of about 56 km. At that height, RLV-TD separated from HS9 booster and further ascended to a heightof about 65 km.

The deal would indirectly bring India under purview of NSG and US laws that would not allow India to conduct nuclear test in the future. The issue of nuclear test was later clarified as the moratorium on nuclear test was unilateral and voluntary and there was no pressure on India from outside.

The Tejas is the second supersonic fighter developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) after the HAL HF-24 Marut. As of 2016 the Tejas Mark 1 is in production for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the naval version is undergoing flight tests for Indian Navy (IN).