The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences first wants to purchase a small aircraft equipped with various instruments and fly it for a few years before graduating to a bigger US-made C-130J type transport aircraft for aerial data collection. “We will commission an airborne research platform,” Union Science Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said here on Wednesday.
The ministry plans to go ahead with the Rs 200-crore proposal in the 12th plan, though it is yet to be approved by the Finance ministry.
“Once approved, it may take three years to purchase the plane,” Earth Sciences Secretary Shailesh Nayak said.
The aircraft will have instruments to determine the cloud size, temperature, air pressure, and to measure concentration of greenhouse gases and aerosols.
The small aircraft will move in the periphery of a tropical storm for data collection while a bigger one like C-130J can fly straight to the eye of a cyclone and collect more information.
While many advanced nations have their own dedicated research aircraft, India so far has purchased three research ships.