Karnataka governor Vala ends Aero show with speech full of gaffes

BNEGALURU: Karnataka governor

Vajubhai Vala

, 80, made embarrassing gaffes in his closing ceremony speech at the show on Sunday, equating the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas to the Sukhoi Su-30 Mki and then referring to planes that did not even exist.


The Tejas is a single engine light aircraft and the Su-30 Mki, a twin engine multirole fighter plane, but protocol prevented a room full Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) officials — who knew the two aircraft are incomparable given that they are of two different classes — from reacting. Vala continued to mix up facts.

“The loudest plane here (Aero India), the M-16 is made in the US. They also made M-22, which is so expensive that even the US is unable to buy it,” Vala said.

There is no aircraft named M-16 in the US. Vala probably meant to say F-16, which is made by Lockheed Martin, and is used by multiple countries in the world, including the US and Pakistan air forces. And, neither is there an M-22. But going by what he said — about its cost being too high even for the US to purchase — one could infer that he was speaking about the F-22 Raptor, also a Lockheed plane.

“...This is because these planes (M-16 and M-22) are made by private players in the US unlike in India, where government companies don’t worry about profit before the country’s need,” he said, adding: “If we can make Tejas, we can make M-22.”

Among other things, he batted for more opportunities for women in research and development and even the military, where the sex is poorly represented.