NEW DELHI — India is in the final stages of developing a guided bomb and is likely to deploy the indigenously made kit on its fighter aircraft by the end of 2014. Developed by India’s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO), the “glide bombs” are designed to improve the accuracy of air-to-ground bombing by the Indian air force (IAF). Several tests have been performed both through simulation and flight tests over the last few years to reach the required performance levels of precision attacks, Ravi Gupta, DRDO spokesman, tells Aviation Week.

NEW DELHI — Indian Defense Minister A.K. Antony has set a deadline of the end of 2014 for the country’s indigenously developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft to obtain its final operational clearance (FOC). Developed by the Defense and Research Development Organization’s (DRDO) Aeronautical Development Agency and manufactured at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the Tejas has faced delays over more than two decades. It will have to attain final operational clearance (FOC) before being inducted into the Indian air force (IAF).

NEW DELHI — India is considering the purchase of more than a dozen amphibious US-2 aircraft, developed by ShinMaywa Industries of Japan, for both military and civilian services. Designed for air-sea rescue missions, the US-2 is operated by the 31st Fleet Air Wing of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) and could be the first Japanese aircraft offered to the Indian defense and civilian market.