The first light combat aircraft (LCA Mk-1A) built at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s new production line in Nashik is set to make its maiden flight in mid-July, and the state-owned plane maker is targeting delivery of the first LCA Mk-1A produced in Bengaluru to the Indian Air Force in July-August after a delay of almost 16 months, officials aware of the matter said on Monday.
HAL can build 16 Mk-1As every year in Bengaluru, and the Nashik production line will help it boost production to a total of 24 jets. To be sure, the Bengaluru-produced LCA Mk-1A flew for the first time in March 2024.
“The Nashik production line will roll out four to five Mk-1A fighters this year, followed by eight annually next year onwards. It will help us make up for the delay in deliveries due to factors including US firm GE Aerospace’s inability to supply F404- IN20 engines on time and some pending certifications,” said one of the officials cited above, asking not to be named.
IAF is concerned about the current pace of the LCA Mk-1A programme because of the possible risks a delay in the induction of new fighters could pose to its combat effectiveness. The air force ordered 83 Mk-1A fighters for ₹48,000 crore in February 2021 and plans to buy 97 more Mk-1As at a cost of around ₹67,000 crore.
The first of the 83 jets on order was to be delivered to the IAF by March 31, 2024. The last of the 83 jets are to be delivered by 2028-29.
“HAL has so far manufactured six LCA Mk-1As in Bengaluru to execute the 83-aircraft order. One of these, equipped with GE’s F404-IN20 engine, is expected to be delivered to the IAF in July-August. We have sufficient capacity to offset the delay once the engine supplies stabilise,” said a second official, who also asked not to be named.
GE Aerospace delivered the first of 99 F404-IN20 engines to HAL in March. The second engine is expected to be delivered in July, followed by two every month until December, the officials said, adding that deliveries will be accelerated next year onwards.
The US firm had then explained why the engine supply was delayed and assured HAL that production was being ramped up to execute the Indian order. In 2004, the F404-IN20 engine was selected for the older LCA Mk-1, which has been inducted by the IAF. By 2016, GE Aerospace had delivered 65 F404-IN20 engines for the Mk-1 aircraft.
With no additional engine orders, the production line for F404-IN20 in the US was shut down. However, when HAL ordered an additional 99 engines in 2021 for the LCA Mk-1A, the US firm began the complex task of restarting the production line, which had been dormant for five years, and re-engaging the engine’s global supply chain.
In May, IAF voiced its frustration over the delays in key projects.
The chief of the air staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh then put the spotlight on the armed forces’ agonising wait for new weapons and systems, saying he could not recall a single instance of a project being executed on time, in what was seen as a wake-up call for the country’s defence production sector.
“Timelines are a big issue,” Singh said at the CII Annual Business Summit 2025. The air force is grappling with a shortage of fighter jets and operates around 30 fighter squadrons compared to an authorised 42.
The armed forces have so far not called “the black sheep” out, but their “restraint” should not be stretched to a breaking point, Singh said, issuing a veiled warning to defence public sector units including HAL and the Defence Research and Development Organisation among others.
Singh has often publicly flagged concerns about a worrying erosion of IAF’s capabilities and called for urgent measures to fix it. In February, he questioned the ability of HAL to meet the air force’s critical requirements in the backdrop of the lingering delay in the supply of new Mk-1A fighter jets, saying he had “no confidence” in the plane maker.
HAL chief DK Sunil then responded by saying that his company’s focus is on delivering the LCA Mk-1A to the IAF at the earliest rather than spending time on countering criticism of the indigenous programme.
The LCA is set to emerge as the cornerstone of IAF’s combat power as the world’s fourth largest air force is expected to operate around 350 LCAs (Mk-1, Mk-1A and Mk-2 variants) in the coming decades. The Mk-1A, a 4.5 generation fighter, will come with digital radar warning receivers, external self-protection jammer pods, superior radar, advanced beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air missiles, and significantly improved maintainability.
On June 11, a top IAF officer said precision weapons, such as the ones used by IAF against Pakistan during Operation Sindoor rendered geographical barriers almost meaningless and altered the relationship between distance and vulnerability.
“Today, precision-guided munitions like Scalp and BrahMos (missiles) have rendered geographical barriers almost meaningless as strikes with beyond visual range air-to-air missiles and supersonic air-to-ground missiles have become commonplace,” said Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, chief of integrated defence staff.
Modern warfare — thanks to technology — has fundamentally altered the relationship between distance and vulnerability, he added.
In March, a top government committee recommended a raft of short and long-term measures to boost the capabilities of IAF and pointed out that it was critical to enhance self-reliance in the aerospace sector through increased participation of the private sector to fill critical gaps.
Steps are being taken to boost private participation in the aerospace sector.
Last month, India unveiled its long-awaited plan to fast-track the development of an indigenous fifth-generation stealth fighter, or the advanced medium combat aircraft (AMCA), announcing that the execution model will be competitive and provide equal opportunities to public and private sector firms to participate in one of the country’s most significant military projects.
The approval of the industry partnership model by defence minister Rajnath Singh came at a critical moment as HAL — the sole manufacturer of fighter jets in the country — was till then believed to be the frontrunner for the project.
While the model unlocks new possibilities for the local aerospace industry, including firms like Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Larsen & Toubro, Adani Defence and Aerospace and the Mahindra Group; HAL is still a strong contender for the project, as earlier reported by HT.