Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh piloted a TEJAS MK-1 fighter jet with Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi as the co-pilot on Sunday, February 9. This marks the first time an Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief has flown the Army Chief in an indigenous combat aircraft. The 45-minute flight in the two-seater trainer version of the TEJAS MK-1 Light Combat Aircraft took off from the Yelahanka airbase in Bangalore during Aero India 2025.

This event signals jointness in the armed forces and the air force's backing of the locally produced fighter jet. Air Chief Marshal AP Singh will also fly in a formation of three TEJAS MK-1s on Monday, the opening day of Aero India 2025, which is Asia’s biggest Air Show. The air force has already inducted the TEJAS MK-1s.

This development comes at a time when Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is set to begin critical trials on the TEJAS MK-1A, an advanced variant of the MK-1 aircraft. These trials will test the indigenous Astra beyond-visual-range missile, the aircraft’s locally made electronic warfare suite, and the Israeli Elta radar.

HAL is aiming to deliver the first fighter jet to the IAF by March 31, after completing the necessary certification requirements. The TEJAS MK-1A will also participate in the aerial display during the five-day Air Show.

The IAF has ordered 83 MK-1A fighters for ₹48,000 crore in February 2021 and plans to buy 97 more Mk-1As at a cost of around ₹67,000 crore. HAL is in talks with US firm GE Aerospace to expedite the delivery of the F404 engines for the MK-1A aircraft.

Agencies