First shots fired in IAF trainer aircraft procurement contest

A Beechcraft rendition of the T-6C trainer with IAF roundels added on. This aircraft, which will be evaluated by the IAF from Monday the 11th, is one of the hot contenders to replace the accident-dogged HPT-32 Deepak that the IAF has been using as a Stage-1 trainer.

I had written about the Grob trainer, which is also vying for India's purchase of 75 trainers, while HAL develops and builds 106 of its own Hindustan Turbo Trainer - 40 (HTT-40). My article is archived in Broadsword, on 16th June 10, "Grob Aircraft targets 181 trainers for the IAF: eyes HAL’s share of 106 basic trainers"

The Beechcraft press release is replicated below:

Beechcraft T-6C Trainer to Demonstrate Proven Capabilities during Indian Air Force Field Evaluation Trials

WICHITA, Kan. (Oct. 5, 2010) – Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) today announced its Beechcraft T-6C military trainer is scheduled for evaluation by the Indian Air Force (IAF) in field evaluation trials beginning Oct. 11 at the Air Force Station Jamnagar in India. HBC is vying for a contract that specifies an initial purchase of 75 aircraft and options for follow-on orders that could eventually exceed 100 aircraft. A decision on the contract is anticipated in the coming months.

“The T-6C offers the Indian Air Force the world’s most proven and cost-effective training system available,” said Jim Maslowski, HBC president, U.S. and International Government Business. “It accommodates instruction in instrument flight procedures and basic aerial maneuvers and, including its predecessors the T-6A and T-6B, has accounted for more than 640 deliveries worldwide.”

The T-6C is being considered as a replacement for the IAF’s HPT-32 Deepak 2 trainer. The evaluations will be conducted over five days and consist of flights by IAF test and instructor pilots. HBC will also demonstrate the T-6C’s maintainability as part of the evaluation.

The T-6C aircraft features an integrated glass cockpit and advanced avionics suite that greatly expands advanced training opportunities, including a Head-Up Display, Up Front Control Panel, three Multifunction Displays and Hands-On Throttle and Stick. With its hard point wing, it can accommodate external fuel tanks and the systems and capabilities of today’s front-line strike fighter aircraft, while retaining all the inherent training and flying characteristics that have made the T-6 the most successful primary trainer in the world.

The Beechcraft T-6 delivers an outstanding training capability that is appropriate for most basic introductory flight training through more challenging and complex advanced training missions. To date, it has been used to train pilots from approximately 20 different countries.

Deliveries of the T-6 began in 2000 after the aircraft was initially selected to fill the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System role for the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Navy. Since then, additional military programs worldwide, including NATO Flying Training in Canada, the Hellenic Air Force of Greece, the Israeli Air Force, the Iraqi Air Force and the Royal Moroccan Air Force, have chosen the T-6 as their primary trainers.