Aero India 2023: Lord Hanuman image back on HAL aircraft model

After causing much controversy, the sticker of lord Hanuman was back on display on the tail of an HLFT-42 full-scale model of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), showcased at Aero India 2023 on Friday.

Anjaneya, as Hanuman is also referred to, is seen with his mace in battle mode and the caption below the sticker read, "The storm is coming".

An HAL official said they put the Hanuman image back on aircraft following an order from higher authorities.

The HTFT-42 trainer aircraft has been kept at the HAL's Hall-3 here at the five-day aviation exhibition. The display hogged limelight and Union minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi had tweeted about the Lord Hanuman picture

Joshi had shared the pictures of HLFT-42, a super jet model, along with a line of the prayer dedicated to Lord Hanuman.

"The picture of Bajrangbali (Lord Hanuman) is specially highlighted on the jet," he had said.

The Hanuman image on HAL aircraft also recieved backlash on social media. As it hit headlines, the defence PSU removed it without citing any particular reason.

"There used to be an HAL aircraft called HF-24 Marut (meaning wind). It was derived from it. There is nothing specific to derive from it (image of Lord Hanuman)," an HAL official told PTI.

He added that the objective was to show the power of the aircraft.

The HAL displayed for the first time the scale model HLFT-42, at the Aero India.

HLFT-42 is the 'Next Gen Supersonic Trainer' that will play a "critical role" in modern combat aircraft training with state-of-the-art avionics like Active Electronically Scanned Array, Electronic Warfare Suite, Infrared Search and Track with Fly by Wire control system.