New Delhi, 18 September (H.S.): Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Friday handed over the final two trainer aircraft of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mark-1 to the Indian Air Force (IAF) in Bengaluru, completing delivery of all 40 aircraft under the first order placed with the state-owned aerospace major.

HAL also handed over three HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft to the Indian Air Force and Dhruv Next Generation (NG) helicopters to Pawan Hans Limited during the same programme.

HAL handed over the two twin-seat Tejas trainer aircraft to the IAF in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu. The two aircraft constitute the final batch under the IAF’s original order for 40 LCA Mark-1 aircraft.

The IAF had placed the 40-aircraft order in two phases, in March 2006 and December 2010. Of the total, 38 aircraft had already been delivered. With the handover of the final two twin-seat trainers, HAL has now completed the delivery of the initial LCA Mark-1 order, increasing the focus on the pending supply of LCA Mark-1A aircraft.

The Indian Air Force has placed orders with HAL in two tranches for 180 Tejas Mark-1A fighter aircraft. The first contract, signed in February 2021, covered 83 aircraft, while a second order for 97 aircraft was placed in September last year. Under the two contracts, the IAF is to receive 141 fighter aircraft and 39 trainer aircraft.

However, deliveries of the Mark-1A aircraft have been delayed due to issues related to missile and radar integration as well as a shortage of engines.

HAL Chairman and Managing Director Ravi Kumar attributed the delay in the supply of Tejas Mark-1A aircraft to challenges involving missile and radar integration and the shortage of engines. He said the company expects to complete delivery of the aircraft over the next four to five years.

The aircraft are being manufactured at HAL’s Bengaluru and Nashik divisions. Kumar said the company is making extensive use of private-sector participation in the production of platforms, including the LCA, helicopters and HTT-40. HAL is handling integration, while several non-core activities are being carried out by private industry partners.

Kumar said the missile and radar integration challenges had contributed to delays in the Tejas Mark-1A programme, but expressed hope that the issues would be resolved soon. He said 27 airframes had already been manufactured and that HAL had received 10 engines, enabling the company to begin aircraft deliveries.

During the same programme, the first batch of three HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft was handed over to the Indian Air Force. Deliveries of the HTT-40 had been delayed for a considerable period, primarily because of global supply-chain problems affecting the availability of Honeywell’s TPE-331-12B turboprop engines.

Following approval for the supply of the engines, the way has now been cleared for deliveries of the trainer aircraft. The three aircraft are part of a contract worth Rs 6,838 crore signed by the Defence Ministry in March 2023 for 70 HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft.

The Dhruv NG helicopters handed over to Pawan Hans Limited are intended for civilian operations. Pawan Hans had placed an order for 10 helicopters, four of which were handed over during the programme. The helicopters will be used for offshore operations, emergency medical services and passenger transportation. They feature modern glass cockpits and enhanced safety systems.

The Central Government has accorded high priority to indigenous design, development and manufacturing in the aerospace and defence sectors. The induction of these platforms represents another step towards reducing dependence on foreign sources.

HAL is now expanding beyond military aircraft into civilian helicopters as well, contributing to the growth of India’s domestic aerospace and aviation manufacturing capabilities.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar