The National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) is India's first and largest aerospace research firm established by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Delhi in 1959. The firm closely operates with HAL, DRDO, and ISRO and has the primary responsibility of developing civilian aircraft in India. It concentrates on research in advanced topics in aerospace and related disciplines. Based in Bengaluru, the NAL employs a staff of about 2500 of which 350 are full-time R&D professionals.[citation needed] NAL is equipped with the Nilakantan Wind tunnel Centre and a computerized fatigue test facility. The NAL also has facilities for the investigation of failures and accidents in the domain of aerospace engineering. History On 1 June, 1959, the National Aeronautical Research Laboratory (NARL) was set up in Delhi, with Dr. P Nilakantan as its first Director. In March of 1960, it set up an office in the stables of the Palace of Maharaja of Mysore on Jayamahal Road, Bangalore, as the National Aeronautical Laboratory (NAL). The first Executive Council was chaired by J. R. D. Tata. Its members included Prof. Satish Dhawan and the designer Dr. V M Ghatage. Originally started as the National Aeronautical Laboratory, it was renamed National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) in April 1993. The renaming aimed to reflect its growing involvement in the Indian space program and its multidisciplinary activities. Flosolver Flosolver was a series of Indian supercomputers designed and assembled by the NAL. Work began on the initial computer in 1986 to help with computational fluid dynamics. Current Projects RTA-70 (Indian Regional Jet) The HAL/NAL Regional Transport Aircraft (RTA) or Indian Regional Jet (IRJ) is a regional airliner being designed by National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) and to be manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The aircraft is planned to be a turboprop or a jet with a capacity of 80–100 passengers. Its basic version will have 70–90 seats (RTA-70) The 90 seater variant of the aircraft is being designed as of 2021 and is expected to enter service in 2026. Products Aircraft NAL HANSA - Light-weight Trainer Aircraft The maiden flight of CSIR-NAL's light trainer aircraft, now called Hansa, took place on 17 November 1993. The aircraft is an ab-initio two-seat, all-composite aircraft, certified by the DGCA in the year 2000 under JAR-VLA certification. DGCA has promoted the use of the Hansa-3 by various flying clubs; a total of fourteen aircraft are in operation. Thirteen aircraft are