The Indian Air Force will get at least six light fighter aircraft (LCA) Tejas by March 2026. The head of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a company manufacturing these state -of -the -art fighter aircraft, gave this information. He has said that the delay in the engine supply from GE Aerospace is responsible for the delay in the supply of Tejas.
The case of delay in supply of MK-1A version of LCA Tejas Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal A. P. Singh had recently raised it, after which it became a big issue. HAL Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) DK Sunil said that the delay was only due to inability to supply F404 engine on time by the American company GE Aerospace.
The HAL chief said in a special interview with PTI video that 12 engines are expected to be supplied by GE Aerospace in the current financial year. This will ease the supply of fighter aircraft to the Indian Air Force. He said, ‘Every company has to face criticism. This happens (only). Unfortunately, in the case of LCA Mark-1A (also this has happened), we have made aircraft. As of today, we have six aircraft ready, but the engine has not been supplied from the GE aerospace. He (GE) had to supply the engine in 2023. So far, we have got only one engine.
The delay from GE was initially due to delay in production during the Kovid epidemic and the departure of several senior engineers from the company, which hindered the supply chain. According to Sunil, technical issues with GE aerospace have been resolved and HAL is expected to get 12 jet engines by March 2026.
Sunil said, ‘I can assure you that in today’s date six aircraft are ready. There is no shortage from our side. We are constantly building these aircraft and preparing them and we (by the end of this financial year) will be in a position to provide them.
HAL has planned to produce 16 jets in the coming year, provided the engine supply from GE aerospace is continuously possible. The Ministry of Defense made a deal of Rs 48,000 crore with HAL for the purchase of 83 Tejas MK-1A Jet for the Air Force in February 2021. The ministry is in the process of buying 97 and LCA MK-1A at a cost of Rs 67,000 crore.
The single engine MK-1A will replace the Indian Air Force MiG-21 fighter jets. The Indian Air Force is considering to include these fighter aircraft in its fleet, as its number of fighter squadron has been officially reduced from 42 to 31.
Tejas is a single engine with multi-use fighter aircraft, capable of operating in high-cost air areas. It is designed for air protection, maritime reconnaissance and attacker roles. Sunil said that Tejas MK-1A is a world-level aircraft, with high quality radar, electronic war system and many types of missiles.
He said, ‘This includes completely state -of -the -art avionics and weapon system, which make this aircraft very powerful platforms. This will prove to be very beneficial for our Air Force. Sunil said that many countries have shown interest in Tejas and the manufacturer company (HAL) is interacting with some of them. He refused to explain this in detail and said, ‘We are talking to many countries on Tejas. I hope we will get success soon.