Bengaluru: Eminent Aerospace Scientist and Padma Vibhushan awardee Roddam Narasimha passed away at a private hospital here yesterday night. He was 87. He was admitted to the hospital on Dec. 8 after he suffered a brain haemorrhage.

He is survived by his wife and a daughter. Last rites will be conducted today.

A former Director of the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), he had played a key role in the design and development of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas.

Born on July 20, 1933, Professor Narasimha made a mark in the field of aerospace and as a fluid dynamicist. He taught Aerospace Engineering at the IISc from 1962 to 1999. He also served as the director of the National Aerospace Laboratories from 1984 to 1993.

He was the Chairperson of the Engineering Mechanics unit at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bengaluru from 2000 to 2014.

The Government of India had bestowed Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award of India, in 2013. Narasimha was also the recipient of the Bhatnagar Prize, and the 2008 Trieste Science Prize.

A Fellow of the Royal Society and a Foreign Associate of both the US National Academy of Engineering and the US National Academy of Sciences, he was a Distinguished Alumnus of both the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc).

PM Narendra Modi tweeted, “Shri Roddam Narasimha personified the best of India’s tradition of knowledge and enquiry. He was an outstanding scientist, passionate about leveraging the power of science and innovation for India’s progress. Pained by his demise. Condolences to his family and friends. Om Shanti.”