India's first light combat aircraft is the effort of 40 laboratories, 25 academic institutions and 300 companies.
Flown by Group Captain A P Singh, the aircraft covered an altitude upto 11 km and supersonic speed of Mach 1.1, DRDO said in its release.
Officially named Tejas, the aircraft has undergone over 1,000 hours of test flights.
In a last-minute twist, General Electric of the US has bagged the hotly contested $800-million tender to supply 99 engines for India's Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA). After both engines in the contest -- GE's F-414 and Eurojet's EJ-200 -- were found technically suitable, the F-414 has been declared the cheaper option.
Thirty-two years after the project was sanctioned, the first indigenously-built Tejas Light Combat Aircraft was on Saturday handed over by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to the Indian Air Force, a red letter day for Indian defence and aerospace sector.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is establishing a maintenance facility for GE Aerospace's F404-IN20 jet engines, which power the Tejas light combat aircraft, with technical support from GE Aerospace. This initiative aims to enhance India's indigenous defence capabilities and reduce reliance on overseas repair centres.
The Indian Air Force's Tejas light combat jets are scheduled to return to the skies next week after being grounded for two months due to a software glitch. HAL expects to deliver over 20 Tejas Mark 1A variants by December, but delays persist due to engine supply issues.
This was the first time two chiefs of the armed forces undertook a flight together.
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.
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.
'The aircraft is expected to be ready for rollout between January and March 2026, and to fly by the end of the year.'
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.
On Wednesday, August 23, 2023, Tejas, the Light Combat Aircraft LSP-7, successfully fired the ASTRA indigenous Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile off the coast of Goa.
On Saturday, July 1, 2023, the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas will complete seven years of service in the Indian Air Force.
HAL has assured the IAF that 12 Mk1A aircraft will be delivered by the end of 2025-2026.
According to an international media report, the jet crashed in the afternoon local time while flying a demonstration flight at the prestigious air show.
The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has approved procurement of long range rockets, missiles, radar systems and military platforms worth Rs 79,000 crore to bolster the military's combat prowess.
The Indian Navy has ruled out deploying indigenously built light combat aircraft Tejas on its aircraft carriers, saying it is "not being able to meet the requirements".
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.
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 Tejas is a fourth generation combat aircraft developed by Aeronautical Development Agency and the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. It is equipped with fly-by-wire flight control system, integrated digital avionics and multimode radar.
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.
HAL aims to raise output from the current ceiling of 24 aircraft a year to 30 by the end of 2027
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.
This was the first time General Rawat flew in the home-made fighter jet, known for its agility, being the smallest and lightest multirole supersonic fighter jet in its class.
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 DRDO conducted the test in collaboration with the Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
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 wife and daughter of Wing Commander Namansh Syal, who died in the Tejas crash at the Dubai Air Show, bid him a tearful farewell as he was cremated in his native village.
The Indian Air Force keeps moving its aircraft in both the Union Territories in the Northern sector including Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to give them the experience of flying there in their unique terrain.
Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa calling the FOC a 'major milestone'.
The flight was part of the Women's Day event at the Aero India 2019 air show.
India's own first supersonic multi-role combat aircraft Tejas, meant to replace MiG 21s and MiG 23s, will join the Air Force on Monday for initial operational clearance.
BJP MP Tejasvi Surya on Thursday took a sortie in Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, on the second day of the ongoing Aero India-2021 in Bengaluru.
The defence ministry said 98 per cent of the total procurement worth Rs 2.23 lakh crore will be sourced from the domestic industries.
'Our production capacity ramp-up initiatives are expected to meet the critical requirements of our armed forces.'
The feat was achieved days after the Indian Air Force successfully did a dry run of mid-air refuelling using the Russian-built IL-78 MKI tanker.
Air Chief Marshal A P Singh and Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi on Sunday set the tone for the grand Aero India-2025 by flying in the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas in Bengaluru at Yelahanka based Air Force Station.
Private and public defence players can bid to participate in the stealth fighter development programme independently, as a joint venture, or as consortia.
The No 18 Squadron, formed in 1965 with the motto "Teevra aur Nirbhaya" meaning "Swift and Fearless," was earlier flying MiG 27 aircraft.
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