ISRO hot-tests CE-20 engine successfully

• The flight acceptance hot-test of CE-20 engine has been successfully carried out in the High Altitude Test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) at Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu for a duration of 25 seconds. 

• The engine is earmarked for the LVM3-M3 mission identified for launching the next 36 OneWeb India-1 satellites. 

• LVM3, ISRO’s heaviest rocket, is capable of launching a four tonne class of satellite to Geosynchronous Transfer orbit. 

• LVM3 (Launch Vehicle Mark 3) is a three-stage vehicle with two solid motor strap-ons, a liquid propellant core stage and a cryogenic stage.

• The flight acceptance test comes within days of the launch of the first set of 36 OneWeb satellites by the NSIL from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC- SHAR) in Sriharikota on October 23.

• The cryogenic upper stage of the LVM3 vehicle (C25 stage) is powered by a CE-20 engine working with the LOX-LH2 propellants combination. This engine develops a nominal thrust of 186.36 kN in vacuum. 

• The major objectives of the flight acceptance test were to confirm the integrity of the hardware, assessment of subsystems' performance and tune the engine for meeting the mission requirements parameters for engine tuning for flight operation. 

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Indo-French joint air exercise ‘Garuda VII’ begins in Jodhpur

• The Indian and French air forces are undertaking an 18-day military exercise in Jodhpur involving a significant number of combat jets such as Rafale, Tejas, Jaguar and Sukhoi-30s to further enhance operational cooperation.

• The ‘Garuda VII’ exercise began on October 26 and will culminate on November 12.

• The French Air and Space Force (FASF) participates in the exercise with four Rafale fighter jets, one A-330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft and a contingent of 220 personnel.

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has deployed Sukhoi-30 MKI jets, Rafales, Light Combat Aircraft Tejas, Jaguar jets, Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) and Mi-17 helicopters.

• The IAF contingent will also include combat enabling assets like flight refuelling aircraft, AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) and AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) aircraft.

• This joint exercise will provide a platform for both the countries to enhance operational capability and interoperability, while also sharing best practices.

• It is the seventh edition of the bilateral exercise. The first, third and fifth editions were conducted in India in 2003, 2006 and 2014 at Air Force stations Gwalior, Kalaikunda and Jodhpur, respectively.

• The second, fourth and sixth editions were conducted in France in 2005, 2010 and 2019.

• The military cooperation between India and France has witnessed a major expansion in the last few years.

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India, Singapore bilateral naval exercise SIMBEX begins

• India’s five-day joint naval war exercise SIMBEX with Singapore began on October 26 at Visakhapatnam. 

• The 29th edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) will conclude on October 30.

• The exercise is being conducted in two phases – Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam, followed by the Sea Phase in Bay of Bengal. 

• Two ships from Republic of Singapore Navy — RSS Stalwart (a Formidable Class Frigate) and RSS Vigilance (a Victory Class Corvette) — arrived at  Visakhapatnam on October 25 for participation in the exercise.

• SIMBEX series of exercises began in 1994 and were initially known as Exercise Lion King. 

• The scope and complexity of the exercise has risen substantially over the past two decades to include advanced naval drills covering a wide spectrum of maritime operations. 

• The exercise exemplifies the high level of cooperation between India and Singapore in the maritime domain. It also highlights the commitment and contribution of the two nations towards enhancing maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region.

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Veteran Assamese actor Nipon Goswami dies

• Veteran Assamese actor Nipon Goswami, who donned varied roles for over 50 years, passed away. He was 80.

• The veteran actor was associated with the golden era Assamese commercial cinema.

• Born in Tezpur to an actor father and singer mother, Goswami made his debut as a child actor in Assamese film ‘Piyoli Phukan’.

• An alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, Goswami was a classmate of Subhas Ghai, Shatrughan Sinha and Navin Nischol.

• He began his career as the lead actor in Assamese hit ‘Sangram’, and he followed it up with another superhit ‘Dr Bezbarua’.

• He acted in seven Hindi films, including Kalpana Lajmi’s ‘Daman’, Bhabendranath Saikia’s ‘Kaal Sandhya’ and Rajkumar Kohli’s ‘Virodhi’.

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