Joseph P. Chacko is the publisher of Frontier India. He holds an M.B.A in International Business. Books: Author: Foxtrot to Arihant: The Story of Indian Navy's Submarine Arm; Co Author : Warring Navies - India and Pakistan.
*views are Personal
"The advantage of the Indian Supersonic Combustion RAMJET (SCRAMJET) engine is the use of hydrocarbon fuel which is cheap compared to cryogenic fuel used by Israel and Russia. Our engine can be switched off, started and used just like a jet engine instead of a rocket engine type approach. This engine is more sophisticated than a jet engine. The challenge is to take the flight time from 20 seconds to 2 hours. Cooling of the engine as well as the aircraft will be the challenge. Before a commercial flight, this technology will see a military use" added Dr Prahlada.
Going forward, as the COVID-19 cases increases in India and the world, the use of face mask and head coverings will result on the decline in gold jewellery sales as it does not perform the role as fashion accessory and status.
The lease contract was signed in July 1987 and the Indian Navy crew deputed to take over the submarine arrived in September for a refresher course as the skills had started to diminish over the intervening year and a half. The handing over process began in October and abruptly stopped as the author received an order to stop the process of transfer and stop access of foreign nationals to the submarine.