A question mark hangs over State-run plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)’s ability to meet the delivery timeline of the new TEJAS light combat aircraft (TEJAS MK-1A) for the current financial year, and even beyond, as it becomes clear that the Indian Air Force will have to wait longer for the first aircraft that was supposed to be delivered by March 31, 2024, senior IAF officers aware of the matter said.

“The first TEJAS MK-1A is likely to be delivered to the air force in November 2024,” said one of the officers who asked not to be named.

After missing the March 31 deadline, HAL hoped to deliver the first aircraft in July but again revised it to a later date in August.

IAF is unhappy with the current pace of the TEJAS MK-1A program because of the possible risks the delay in the induction of new fighter planes could pose to the air force’s combat effectiveness, and has flagged the hot-button issue to HAL, calling for timely execution of the ₹48,000-crore contract for 83 jets.

HAL had then said it will deliver 16 of these fighters to IAF in FY 2024-25 as per schedule. It also said it hoped to deliver all the 83 aircraft on order by 2028-29. The TEJAS MK-1A made its maiden sortie from an HAL facility in Bangalore on March 28.

“Going by the current pace of the program, there’s a fat chance of IAF getting the 16 fighters in FY 2024-25. We will be happy if we can get even half the number,” said a second officer.

Many in the air force are sceptical about the TEJAS MK-1A deadlines being met, and one of the main reasons for that is the lingering delay in the supply of the F404 engines to HAL by US firm GE Aerospace. The delivery of the engines is delayed by around 10 months. Also, the certification of new systems in the aircraft is still pending.

The single-engine MK-1A will be a replacement for the IAF’s Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 fighter. TEJAS MK-1A is an advanced variant of the TEJAS MK-1, which has already been inducted by IAF.

US engine maker GE Aerospace had earlier told HT that it is working with HAL to fix issues related to the delay in the supply of its F4O4 engines for the TEJAS MK-1A program, attributing it to supply chain bottlenecks in the aerospace industry.

The aerospace industry continues to experience unprecedented supply chain pressures, a GE Aerospace spokesperson said on July 12. “GE Aerospace is working with our partner HAL and suppliers to resolve constraints and deliver F404-IN20 engines for the TEJAS MK-1A program.” The statement was in response to HT queries on the reasons for the delay and steps being taken to fix the problem, as the program is crucial for IAF, which is grappling with a shortage of fighter squadrons.

Even as doubts shroud the delivery schedule of the TEJAS MK-1A jets, more are likely to be ordered soon. In April, the defence ministry issued a tender to HAL for the proposed acquisition of 97 more TEJAS MK-1As to strengthen the air force’s capabilities. The new fighter planes are expected to cost around ₹67,000 crore.

HAL has set up a new production line in Nashik for TEJAS MK-1As to meet IAF’s growing needs. HAL says it can build 16 TEJAS MK-1As every year in Bengaluru, and the Nashik line will help it ramp up production to 24 jets.

IAF should have started phasing out the last of its MiG-21s and raising the first TEJAS MK-1A squadron by now. “The conversion to new aircraft for pilots, and the training of technicians and maintenance crews will take time. If we don’t get the new aircraft on time, the capability drawdown will be drastic. IAF doesn’t have a Plan B for the MiG-21 replacement,” an IAF officer earlier said.

TEJAS is set to emerge as the cornerstone of IAF’s combat power in the coming decade and beyond as it is expected to operate around 350 TEJASs (a mix of MK-1s, MK-1As and the future MK-2). The TEJAS project was sanctioned in 1983 as a replacement for MiG-21s.

To be sure, IAF’s leadership has firmly backed the TEJAS program. In a review last year, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari described the fighter aircraft as the flag-bearer of the air force’s efforts towards the indigenisation of its combat fleet.

IAF recently relocated its last MiG-21 fighters from their home base at Suratgarh in Rajasthan to the sprawling Nal desert fighter base near Bikaner, where the only other remaining Indian MiG-21s are based, as the world’s fourth largest air force prepares the ground to pull these iconic planes out of service and begins raising its new TEJAS MK-1A fleet.

Agencies