CONNAN
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CURRENT STATUS
The Kaveri is still in development, and reports indicate that it will be ready to fly by 2009. Testing and certification for use on the Tejas is expected to take some more time after that. Till then, the first two squadrons of Tejas will be powered by the GE404 engine.
Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister M Natarajan said nearly 90 to 93 per cent of the expected performance had been realised and the government had recently floated an expression of interest to seek partners to move the programme further[7]
DRDO has reportedly been able to develop single crystal blades, which represent a major technological achievement for engine development. Production and integrating this technology into the engine is expected to take some more time.
Kaveri has already undergone 1,700 hours of tests and has been sent twice to Russia to undergo high-altitude tests for which India has no facility. The engine is also being tested to power the next generation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.[8]
In September 2008, it was announced that the Kaveri would not be ready in time for the Tejas, and that an in-production powerplant would have to selected.[9] Development of the Kaveri by the GTRE would continue for other future applications.
It was announced in November 2008 that the Kaveri engine will be installed on LCA by December 2009,[10] apparently for tests only.[citation needed] On 28th nov 2009 a top DRDO official said kaveri engine would be ready for Tejas by march-april 2010
CURRENT AND FUTURE APPLICATIONS
Applications
Plans are also already under way for derivatives of the Kaveri, including a non-afterburning version for an advanced jet trainer and a high-bypass-ratio turbofan based on the Kaveri core, named as Kabini.[13]
GTX-35VS Kaveri:
HAL Tejas (planned for production models)
HAL Medium Combat Aircraft (conceptual)
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
Derivatives:
The Indian government plans to adapt and further develop the Kaveri engine design and technology to create a gas-turbine powerplant for armoured fighting vehicles such as the Arjun tank.
Kaveri Marine Gas Turbine (KMGT), a recently developed derivative of the GTX-35VS Kaveri engine for ships.
Bangalore-based Gas Turbine Research Establishment, part of the chain of laboratories operating under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), has achieved a significant breakthrough by developing a modified marine version of the Kaveri engine, which it has been developing for the country's Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme.
The marine version is a spin-off, which is capable of generating shaft power for Indian naval ships. Using the Kaveri engine core, GTRE scientists have added low pressure compressor and turbine as a gas generator and designed a free power turbine to generate shaft power.
The Kaveri Marine Gas Turbine (KMGT), as it has been named, has been transported to the naval dockyard at Vishakhapatnam and installed on the marine gas turbine test-bed. This is an Indian Navy facility, capable of testing gas turbines of up to 25 MW of shaft power through a reduction gearbox and a water brake dynamometer.
The Indian Navy has been involved in the development of the engine and has participated in the test phase.
The engine has been tested to its potential of 12 MW at ISA SL 35°C condition, which is the requirement of the Indian Navy to propel the Rajput class of ships. The engine has also been demonstrated before the prime minister, Dr Manmohan Singh.
With this development, India becomes self-reliant in the technology of gas turbines for ship propulsion, and puts the country in the same league of nations as the USA, Russia, UK and Ukraine, who posses the capability to design and manufacture marine gas turbine engines.
got caught 
. We may be able to fool the world, but cannot fool the Pakistanis. Even the common Pakistanis know more about our defense development projects than the people involved themselves.
. That is a major credit to Pakistan. u Have to admit.
