HAL has assured the IAF that 12 Mk1A aircraft will be delivered by the end of 2025-2026.
India's indigenous fighter jet programme reached a key milestone on Friday, October 17, 2025, as the Tejas Mk1A made its maiden flight at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's Nashik facility.
Seven years ago, an IAF chief had ordered the HTT-40 to be removed from the Yelahanka air base. The IAF now wants HAL to build 108 HTT-40 aircraft.
HAL executives said deliveries of the Tejas Mk1A to the IAF would begin within this year, but only after the successful completion of the weapons-firing trials currently underway.
Hindustan Turboprop Trainer is a tandem seat trainer aircraft being developed at HAL for the first stage training of rookie pilots.
State-run aerospace behemoth Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) on Thursday said it has received a Request for Proposal (RFP) from the Indian Air Force for basic trainer HTT-40.
HAL made its point against a sceptical Indian Air Force, which opposed the HTT-40 project, blocked funding, and imported an expensive Swiss trainer rather than backing the HTT-40.
The Indian Air Force will induct the indigenous HTT 40 basic trainers in "large numbers", which will boost the domestic capability although it was earlier keen for a Swiss aircraft.
Glimpses from Day 1 at Aero India 2025 at the Yelahanka air base in Bengaluru, India, February 10, 2025.
HAL's HTT-40 aircraft have outperformed both Swiss Pilatus planes and the IAF's performance criteria. Why then does the IAF prefer the Pilatus to the HTT-40?
The army, air force and navy will all benefit from the defence ministry's approval of 'Make in India' equipment.
In a boost to 'Make in India, the HTT-40 rolled out of the hangar with all its lights flashing and its cockpit powered on.
The test flight is a victory for public sector undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, which has strongly backed the Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 project, defying a skeptical Indian Air Force
India's indigenous basic trainer aircraft, Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 (HTT-40), undertook its inaugural flight at the at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Airport in Bengaluru on Friday.
During these seven decades, the IAF has lost 2,374 aircraft to crashes. They include 1,126 fighters and 1,248 non-combat aircraft. In addition, 229 trainers and 196 helicopters have crashed. These crashes have resulted in the deaths of 1,305 skilled pilots, note Ajai Shukla and Devesh Kapur.
The Indian Air Force argued that Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's HTT-40 trainer jet would be costlier than the Swiss Pilatus trainer over its 30-year service life. When HAL challenged this contention, the IAF was not able to back it with figures.
Instead of the Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40, which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd could build, export, overhaul, upgrade and even modify into a light-attack aircraft, powerful lobbies have promoted a Swiss trainer -- the Pilatus PC-7 Mark II.
Top HAL sources say the AMCA, which is being developed as the IAF's next-generation stealth fighter, is slated to be assembled at HAL Nashik.
A spate of recent orders under the Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) category have led to investor focus on defence stocks. Actually, the defence index has been an outperformer for a long while with public sector undertakings (PSUs) like Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), Bharat Electronics (BEL), Bharat Dynamics (BDL), Garden Reach Shipbuilders Engineers (GRSE), Cochin Shipyard and Goa Shipyard being beneficiaries of the policy.
An IAF "request for information" floated on the MoD website invites Indian companies to submit preliminary bids to supply the IAF with 106 PC-7 Mk II trainers. Ajai Shukla reports
The Indian Air force has asked the government to procure the Swiss Pilatus basic trainer aircraft to train its rookie pilots instead of a similar aircraft being indigenously developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
Indian Air Force chief, Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne, has sugarcoated his bid to import 106 basic trainer aircraft from Pilatus Aircraft Co, by proposing that Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd build the trainers in Bengaluru to blueprints supplied by the Swiss company.
Singh made the remarks while addressing a "CEOs' Roundtable" at the 14th edition of Aero India at the Yelahanka Air Force station complex on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
A breathtaking display cast a spell at the 12th edition of Aero India.
Banning the import of platforms that are already being built in India serves little purpose.
The list of aircraft planned to be inducted by the Air Force include 36 Rafales, 114 Multirole Fighter Aircraft, 100 Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) and over 200 variants of the Light Combat Aircraft. "In the next 15 years, 83 LCAs are our primary focus, after that LCA Mark 2 will come in we are looking at close to 100 of those, that makes it near 200 of LCA class," Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria told ANI in an interview.
Hemant Shivsaran lists the number of projects the Modi government has announced since August to woo Gujarat voters.
With a combination of both physical and virtual exhibition, the 13th edition of the biennial international event at Air Force Station Yelahanka will be the world's first hybrid aerospace show.
Despite pending payments of over Rs 20,000 crore, HAL revenue grew 6% against the previous year.
"It is my first sortie in Tejas, it is a good aircraft for induction into IAF operations," Raha was quoted as saying by the aircraft maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
The Bengaluru skies dazzled with somersaults and stunts by metal birds.
With no payments coming in, HAL for the first time ever taken a bank loan of Rs 7.81 billion.
Defence Minister A K Antony is flying down to Bangalore to award the Tejas its initial operational certificate on Friday. The Sitara's success in intensive flight-testing this year means that he could soon be making another trip to award an identical certification to the Sitara.
The HAL wants the IAF to buy 80 Tejas Mark I-A to keep the production line occupied from 2020 to 2023-24
One of the most sought after exhibitions in Asia, as many as 549 companies are participating this year with 53 fighter aircraft on display.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances