Defence Secretary RK Singh said that state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is expected to hand over the first two Tejas Mark-1A fighter aircraft by next month. "Hopefully, the first two of those will be delivered with weapons integration by the end of September," Singh said.
The Indian Air Force had flagged concerns over delays in the delivery of the Tejas Mark 1A jets under a previous contract.
It is pertinent to mention that in February 2021, the Ministry of Defence had signed a contract worth Rs 48,000 crore with HAL for the procurement of 83 Tejas Mk-1A fighter aircraft to the Air Force. "About 38 Tejas jets are already in service and another 80-odd are being manufactured," he said.
Why delay in delivery?
The delivery of the Tejas Mk-1A jets has been delayed mainly because the US defence giant GE Aerospace has repeatedly missed deadlines for supplying the aero engines required to power the aircraft.
Meanwhile, the government has recently cleared the procurement of an additional 97 Tejas fighters, at an estimated cost of around Rs 67,000 crore.
The Defence Secretary also said that the government is likely to sign a new contract with HAL for procuring an additional batch of 97 Tejas jets after the delivery of the two aircraft. "I have made it clear to HAL that we will sign this contract only after HAL delivers two Tejas featuring a complete package," Singh said on the additional procurement.
He said HAL "will have an order book for four to five years".
"Hopefully, they (HAL) will be able to perfect this platform, integrate the radar and Indian weapons, so that it becomes a workhorse for us along with the Sukhoi," Singh said.
"There will still be a gap, and for that gap we will have to look at some other options," he said, hinting at the procurement of more platforms for the Indian Air Force.
About Tejas Mark-1A
The single-engine Mk-1A will be a replacement for the IAF's MiG-21 fighters. The IAF is looking at inducting the warplanes as the number of its fighter squadrons has gone down to 31 from the officially sanctioned strength of 42.
Tejas is a single-engine multi-role fighter aircraft capable of operating in high-threat air environments. It has been designed to undertake the air defence, maritime reconnaissance and strike roles.
(With PTI inputs)
Also Read: Tejas Mk1A vs Tejas Mk2: Key differences between India's two indigenous fighter jets
