The delivery of the jets are facing delays primarily due to GE Aerospace missing several deadlines for supply of its aero engines to power the jets.
Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) expressed deep sorrow over the death of an Indian Air Force pilot, Wing Commander Namansh Syal, in a Tejas aircraft crash during an aerial display at the Dubai Air Show. The incident involved the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas and marked the second crash involving a HAL-manufactured aircraft in 20 months.
India and Russia have agreed to jointly produce a twin-engine narrow-body passenger aircraft for short-haul flights, marking a significant step in their strategic ties. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Russia's Public Joint Stock Company United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC-UAC) have signed an agreement for the production of SJ-100 aircraft in India.
This is seen as the first concrete opportunity to break HAL's monopoly in combat aircraft manufacturing, potentially opening the door to a private-sector fighter jet producer.
This is the fourth peacetime crash of an IAF jet in 2025 so far.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is set to retire its MiG-21 aircraft in September after over six decades of service. The last of the MiG-21 jets will be given a farewell at a ceremony in Chandigarh.
The indigenously designed and developed Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH-Dhruv) and the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will not be part of the upcoming Republic Day flypast in India due to the grounding of the entire fleet of ALH-Dhruv helicopters following a crash earlier this month. The grounding of the helicopters is a result of a Coast Guard ALH crash in Porbandar, Gujarat on January 5, which claimed the lives of two pilots and an aircrew diver. The decision to exclude the ALH-Dhruv and Tejas from the flypast comes as a high-level probe panel investigates the cause of the crash.
In the phone conversation on Tuesday, Singh urged Hegseth to expedite the delivery of GE F404 engines to power the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, people familiar with the matter said.
According to an international media report, the jet crashed in the afternoon local time while flying a demonstration flight at the prestigious air show.
HAL's order book amounts to Rs 2.45 trillion by end of Q2FY26, implying a book-to-bill ratio of 32 times based on FY25 revenue.
The value of contracts awarded by the MoD in 2024-2025 is the highest ever and double the previous record set in 2023-2024.
'The aircraft is expected to be ready for rollout between January and March 2026, and to fly by the end of the year.'
A five-member team, headed by Sanjay Kumar Singh, is probing the fatal crash of the Air India aircraft last month in Ahmedabad that killed 260 people. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has released its preliminary report and appointed the team.
The participation of the three vice chiefs in the Tarang Shakti exercise demonstrated the growing focus on cross-domain cooperation, with land, sea, and air forces working together to face modern challenges, an official said.
The defence ministry said 98 per cent of the total procurement worth Rs 2.23 lakh crore will be sourced from the domestic industries.
At a press conference ahead of Air Force Day on October 8, he also said that India needs to catch up with China on technology and speed in production of military equipment, holding that "we are way behind" the neighbour. Air Chief Marshal Singh, at the same time, said the Indian military is way ahead in terms of personnel including those operating various machines and platforms. "I am very confident that as far as human angle is concerned, as far as our people behind the machine are concerned, we are way ahead of them," he said.
Three crew members were killed after a helicopter of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) crashed and caught fire at an airport on the outskirts of Gujarat's Porbandar city, police said.
'An HAL-private sector tieup is a possibility.'
The slippage in the delivery schedule for the LCA Mk-1A variant of the jet had become a major issue with Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A P Singh raising the matter publicly.
The CCS approved the proposal to buy 156 LCH 'Prachand' worth over Rs 62,500 crore from HAL, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said.
Aerospace major Rolls-Royce has announced its intention to double its supply chain sourcing from India over the next five years. The company plans to increase sourcing of complex parts for advanced aerospace engines, naval propulsion systems, diesel engines, and gas turbine engines to grow its presence and participation in India's defense sector. Rolls-Royce currently sources a wide range of high-precision parts and engine components from Indian partners for its civil aerospace, defense, and power systems businesses. The company highlights India's emergence as a preferred global sourcing hub and emphasizes its commitment to strengthening partnerships with both existing and potential Indian suppliers to develop capabilities for manufacturing complex engine components locally for global markets. Rolls-Royce highlights its established ecosystem of strategic partnerships, skilled talent, engineering and digital capabilities, service delivery, supply chain, and manufacturing in India, along with a history of successful technology transfer for licensed production of various engines in the defense domain. The company believes that strengthening the supply chain and enhancing ecosystem capabilities will pave the way for future co-production opportunities, supporting India's vision of becoming a self-reliant defense powerhouse. Rolls-Royce emphasizes its commitment to serving the needs of India's armed forces and its focus on participating in co-development opportunities for critical combat engine technologies.
The government will set up a special purpose vehicle to push ahead with plans to start manufacturing commercial aircraft in India, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said on Wednesday as he highlighted the potential of the country's fast-growing aviation sector. The Bhartiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill 2024, which was passed by the Lok Sabha in August, includes provisions to regulate the design and manufacturing of aircraft, supporting the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative for self-reliance.
The government on Friday conferred Navratna status on public sector giants Bharat Electronics Ltd, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Power Finance Corporation Ltd.
Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, an accomplished fighter pilot with more than 5,000 hours of flying experience, on Monday assumed charge as new chief of the Indian Air Force, succeeding incumbent Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari.
The government on Tuesday said it has received Rs 4,353 crore as dividend tranches from seven public sector enterprises, including Coal India and PFC. Government has respectively received about Rs 575 crore and Rs 2038 crore from Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd and Coal India Ltd as dividend tranches," Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey tweeted. Besides, about Rs 887 crore and Rs 653 crore have been received from Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd as dividend tranches.
HAL aims to raise output from the current ceiling of 24 aircraft a year to 30 by the end of 2027
State-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has won a bid under which it will receive technology from the Indian Space Research Organisation for the end-to-end commercial production of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), a first for the industry as India seeks to become a global hub for small satellite manufacturing and launches.
It involves India spending an estimated Rs 40,000 crores to Rs 50,000 crores and will take 10 to 15 years to develop.
Of the 156 choppers, 66 would be inducted by the Indian Air Force while the rest 90 would be acquired by the Indian Army.
'Today's situation is unacceptable. It has the potential to affect the IAF's operational capability.'
The pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a brief statement.
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.
India's aviation industry is 20-30 years behind the United States and other western nations, believes US envoy Timothy Roemer.
The first batch of Advanced Light Helicopter 'Dhruv' Mk-III was on Wednesday inducted at the Indian Air Force station in Bareilly.
The Light Utility Helicopter, which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd is designing for the Indian military, has encountered turbulence even before leaving the drawing board. French engine-maker Turbomeca, whose vaunted Shakti engine was to power the LuH, is demanding what Ministry of Defence sources term 'extortionist prices' for integrating the Shakti with the LuH.
The naval version of Tejas light combat aircraft is in development stage. Officials said the successful "arrested landing" of the prototype of the naval version of Tejas on the deck of INS Vikramaditya is expected to speed up development of the jet for the Indian Navy.
State-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd would now be producing and assembling 'flaperons' of Boeing-777s which are used for take-offs, landings and manoeuvering of these sophisticated airplanes.
The HAL-manufactured aircraft is around 580 kg overweight.
The Mark-1A will be more sophisticated and capable than the Tejas Mark-1.
Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A P Singh on Thursday flagged serious concerns over inordinate delays in various defence acquisition projects and failure to stick to delivery schedules for supply of key platforms even as he hailed Operation Sindoor as a 'national victory'.
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