The first six Hawk Advanced Jet Trainers destined for the Indian Air Force (IAF) have achieved Interim Acceptance, marking a significant milestone in the Indian Hawk programme.

This coincides with IAF's debut appearance at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT), said an official spokesman.

'Interim acceptance represents the IAF agreeing that the aircraft produced meets the standard required to allow instructor pilot and maintenance training to commence, so it is a major step forward on the programme,' said Hawk Project Director, India, Dave Corfield.

Three of the Hawks are currently being used to convert IAF instructor pilots to the aircraft at BAE Systems Warton, in a partnership between BAE Systems and the RAF.

The training will be extended to include Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) test pilots later this month. This is part of the aircrew training package that has already seen 50 IAF pilots undergo training, delivered by BAE Systems and the RAF, using the Hawk Synthetic Training Facility and RAF Hawks based at RAF Valley.

The further three IAF Hawks that have been through the interim acceptance process are now situated in the Technical Training Academy at BAE Systems Warton, where they are being used to train IAF technicians who will support and maintain the aircraft when it enters service.

The six aircraft are the first of 66 new Hawk Advanced Jet Trainers for the IAF. The first 24 aircraft are being built at BAE Systems' facilities in Brough, East Yorkshire, with flight-testing and customer acceptance taking place at Warton in Lancashire.

The remaining 42 aircraft are being manufactured under licence in India through a partnership with India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, based in Bangalore.

The first aircraft will be delivered to the Indian Air Force by BAE Systems in September of this year.Trade Arabia News Service