India agrees to pay HAL Rs 62,370 crore for 97 Tejas Mk-1A aircraft. 2027 deliveries will begin when GE boosts up engine supply. Aatmanirbhar‘s defense has a big boost.
US-based General Electric (GE) is once again on schedule to fulfill engine promises for India’s domestic Tejas fighter aircraft, according to Dr. DK Sunil, chairman along with managing director of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
We may now get 12 engines before the end of the fiscal year, even though GE had guaranteed us 12 engines in a year. We could get ten this year. By March, we will have the rest,” Sunil assured reporters.
With GE overcoming supply chain obstacles, he noted, HAL has already completed the construction of the tenth Tejas aircraft, and the eleventh is prepared for deployment. After resolving the fundamental issues, manufacturing will now pick up speed. They promised us 20 engines for next year,” Sunil said, adding that there was a noticeable improvement in communication with GE’s upper management.
Breaking records Tejas order for Rs 62,370 crore
In order to acquire 97 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk-1A aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Ministry of Defense and HAL inked a deal for Rs 62,370 crore on September 25. Along with related equipment, the order consists of 29 twin-seaters and 68 single-seat fighters.
This deal surpasses the Rs 46,898 crore contract for 83 Mk-1A planes inked in January 2021, making it the biggest order ever placed on the Tejas platform. The newly ordered aircraft will be delivered over a six-year period, starting in 2027–2028.
The focus is on indigenous material
Compared to the previous edition, the updated Mk-1A model will include 67 additional items and about 64 percent indigenous content. Important improvements consist of:
Advanced targeting and monitoring with UTTAM AESA Radar
Electronic warfare package for improved survivability by Swayam Raksha Kavach
Control surface actuators made in the country to improve combat preparedness
The goal of these improvements is to lessen reliance on foreign subsystems while bringing the Tejas closer to cutting-edge fighter standards.
Ecosystem and economic boost
The extensive initiative would boost India’s defense industry. HAL anticipates that about 105 Indian businesses will assist component manufacture in the Tejas supply chain.
Over the course of the six-year production cycle, production is expected to create 11,750 direct and indirect jobs yearly, providing both strategic advantages and a significant increase in employment.
The push of Aatmanirbhar
The procurement is a key component of the government’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat plan and comes under the “Buy (India-IDDM)” category of the Defence procurement Procedure 2020.
The most sophisticated version of India’s domestic fighter, the Tejas Mk-1A, is anticipated to greatly improve the IAF’s operational capabilities and support India’s goal of lowering its dependency on foreign defense hardware.