HAL to get ₹62,000 crore order for 97 more light combat aircraft Mk-1A jets

Hindustan Times

18 hours ago

The Cabinet Committee on Security, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has cleared a ₹62,000-deal to buy 97 more light combat aircraft (LCA Mk-1As) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited to boost the capabilities of the Indian Air Force, officials aware of the matter said on Tuesday. The IAF is concerned about the current pace of the LCA Mk-1A programme
This is the second order for LCA Mk-1As --- the IAF ordered 83 Mk-1A fighters for ₹48,000 crore in February 2021. To be sure, none of the fighters ordered four years back has been delivered yet. The IAF could get the delivery of the first of the 83 jets already ordered in October, the officials said, asking not to be named.
The LCA Mk-1As will replace the IAF's MiG-21 fighter jets. The IAF, the world's fourth largest, is set to retire the last of its iconic MiG-21 fighter jets in September, bringing the curtain down on a 62-year journey. The decommissioning ceremony will be held in Chandigarh.
The first LCA Mk-1A built at HAL's new production line in Nashik is set to make its maiden flight shortly. The state-owned plane maker is targeting to deliver the first LCA Mk-1A produced in Bengaluru to the IAF in September after a delay of around 18 months, HT has learnt.
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HAL can build 16 Mk-1As every year in Bengaluru, and the Nashik production line will help it ramp production to a total of 24 jets.
The IAF is concerned about the current pace of the LCA Mk-1A programme because of the possible risks a delay in the induction of new fighters could pose to its combat effectiveness.
HAL has so far manufactured seven LCA Mk-1As to execute the 83-aircraft order. One of these, equipped with GE's F404-IN20 engine, is expected to be delivered to the IAF next month. GE Aerospace delivered the first of 99 F404-IN20 engines to HAL in March, and said it will speed up further deliveries.
The US firm had then explained why the engine supply was delayed and assured HAL that production was being ramped up to execute the Indian order. In 2004, the F404-IN20 engine was selected for the older LCA Mk-1, which has been inducted by the IAF. By 2016, GE Aerospace had delivered 65 F404-IN20 engines for the Mk-1 aircraft.
With no additional engine orders, the production line for F404-IN20 in the US was shut down. However, when HAL ordered an additional 99 engines in 2021 for the LCA Mk-1A, the US firm began the complex task of restarting the production line, which had been dormant for five years, and re-engaging the engine's global supply chain.
In May, the IAF voiced its frustration over the delays in key projects.
The chief of the air staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh then put the spotlight on the armed forces' agonising wait for new weapons and systems, saying he could not recall a single instance of a project being executed on time, in what was seen as a wake-up call for the country's defence production sector.
'Timelines are a big issue,' Singh said. The air force is grappling with a shortage of fighter jets and operates around 30 fighter squadrons compared to an authorised 42.5.
Singh has often publicly flagged concerns about a worrying erosion of IAF's capabilities and called for urgent measures to fix it. In February, he questioned the ability of HAL to meet the air force's critical requirements in the backdrop of the lingering delay in the supply of new Mk-1A fighter jets, saying he had 'no confidence' in the plane maker.
HAL chief DK Sunil then responded by saying that his company's focus is on delivering the LCA Mk-1A to the IAF at the earliest rather than spending time on countering criticism of the indigenous programme.
The LCA is set to emerge as the cornerstone of IAF's combat power as it is expected to operate around 350 LCAs (Mk-1, Mk-1A and Mk-2 variants) in the coming decades.