Air Force Tejas Mk1A: News & Discussions: 02 January 2022

[Aditya_V]

India as a nation has many times given up, made deals etc in 1000 years , it was Arbian horses, Ambi, kings who never challenged the Ghori and Ghauri while they moved to Somnath.

The challenge is to stick with it invest and get the problem solved, 114 MRCA is only creating a new problem. The payload for each Rafale for Hammer, Scalp, Mica IR, Mica Rf, Meteor costs USD 25 million, we cannot do more than afew sorties. Inthe 1971 war Su 7Bs stopped the successful attack s on Shorkot Road side they ran out of drop tanks, 3 per Aircraft.

However, disappointing, we need to bite the bullet and work on our problems. In 1998 our liquid fuelled Paki M9 M11, but today after 40 years our missiles are far better. Pakis are with M9 M11.

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/pradiprsagar/status/1939197181014986909 ---> Next few weeks will decide — does HAL’s call stick, or does DRDO’s years of hard work get recognition? IAF, MoD, and India’s top defence minds are backing it. Now, it’s not just about technology — it’s about backing Indian systems and having the confidence to trust our own.

A make in India snub
https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/up-f ... 2025-06-28
07 July 2025

[Rakesh]

The value of whole plane is worth more than the radar itself. That is the need of the hour. Lots of old stuff is getting retired. If the radar is going to delay then it is okay to skip it for now. There will be 97 Mk1As and lots of MKIs that will need updating.

And they can upgrade the 83 as part of an MLU later on. This is not the end of the world. This should not be a reason to slow down production.

[Rakesh]

What is more important is that we all hope our decision makers know what they are doing in sticking with the 404. This whole Lindsey Graham-Ukraine business has got me thinking very differently about the so called strategic relationship.

The Mk1A will fly with the F404 turbofan. So will the upcoming 97 Mk1A order.

Changing a turbofan involves a lot of engineering challenges that Cyrano explained. M88 Trex is khayali pulao and is meant for the upcoming Rafale F5 variant that will be entering service in the early 2030s.

[Rakesh]

Well ladies and gents I leave the following here for your kind perusal. They still have to complete full Astra integration. I give up. Somebody ping me when the first Mk1A get delivered. Probably September at the earliest.

Tejas-Mk-1A roll out from Nashik this month, Astra firing likely in Aug: HAL CMD
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ind ... 234157.cms
03 July 2025

At this rate, the MRFA is sure to come.

And the 2052 for the rest of the 83 builds is also confirmed.

This is not the time for Atmanirbhar Bharat. The IAF is painfully low on squadrons. The sooner Air HQ can raise up squadrons, the better.

Uttam AESA can come as part of a future MLU program i.e. like a Mk1B variant or something.

[Rakesh]

Deliver GE engines on priority, conclude joint production deal, Rajnath tells US Defence Secy Hegseth
https://theprint.in/defence/deliver-ge- ... h/2676525/
01 July 2025

Hegseth invited Rajnath Singh for in-person meeting, says MoD. This was their third telephonic conversation since Hegseth’s confirmation in January.

[Tanaji]

My cynical take is HAL 100% knows it will not be able to deliver regardless of the radar change. It has floated this balloon of using Elta instead of Utasm hoping that there will be pushback and then it can justify the delay and its incompetence in project management.

[VinodTK]

My cynical take is HAL 100% knows it will not be able to deliver regardless of the radar change. It has floated this balloon of using Elta instead of Utasm hoping that there will be pushback and then it can justify the delay and its incompetence in project management.

[Roop]

Otherwise Tejas will end up like Marut.

And that may be precisely what some foreign "friendly nations" are striving to achieve. You don't think there will be champagne / vodka / Bud Light toasts in various foreign capitals if Tejas goes the way of Marut?

[Roop]

... I leave the following here for your kind perusal. They still have to complete full Astra integration. I give up.

I know, it is very frustrating. I don't know what to tell you, other than I agree with you.

It seems that with DRDO and HAL we can never get a straight answer about timelines / schedules / deadlines.

Somebody ping me when the first Mk1A get delivered.

At this point, I think we should be thankful if we see this promised first batch of Mk1A's delivered within this calendar year. And no, I am not joking.

[Aditya_V]

Look very few countries have the capability and it is USA, Eur,Russia, China interests to keep it that way, they will use all tactics like they did with our nukes and missiles. It is easy to berate HAL but a infosys or Cognizant or IT VT KPO can't deliver this, HAL along with it's assorted vendors is all we have and we have to work with it. Just blaming HAL and thinking a 3 Lac crore import will not solve the problem.

This over negativity will not help

[Bharadwaj]

Look very few countries have the capability and it is USA, Eur,Russia, China interests to keep it that way, they will use all tactics like they did with our nukes and missiles. It is easy to berate HAL but a infosys or Cognizant or IT VT KPO can't deliver this, HAL along with it's assorted vendors is all we have and we have to work with it. Just blaming HAL and thinking a 3 Lac crore import will not solve the problem.

This over negativity will not help

Aditya, I am a HAL shareholder and I have nothing but positive wishes towards them. Most people on this forum do not want any imports but the fact is that the whole engines are late story is becoming tiresome. You got the engine in April now why have you not delivered the first aircraft? They are clearly inexperienced in terms of getting LRU upgrades certified and tested. ADA is much better at this and IMO HAL should have engaged them more in the MK1A.

[Aditya_V]

So am I although a small shareholder 10 shares bought in apr 20 for 687 rupees which got bonus of 1:1, had I put in a few lacs today that capital gain would have been enough to run a few years of my life but no surplus cash hand to mouth existence. But simply whining cynical is not going to achieve anything. I am sure the cynics shutdown Marut and imported well in the 60s/70s. Import is always an easy stupid option.

[Bharadwaj]

Nobody here is whining cynical about anything but the fact is a simple upgrade programs is 18 months late. The engines bit one can understand but why has HAL not completed astra integration and handed over the first aircraft yet? Asking this does not make anyone a import Bahadur.

[Cyrano]

Deliver GE engines on priority, conclude joint production deal, Rajnath tells US Defence Secy Hegseth
https://theprint.in/defence/deliver-ge- ... h/2676525/
01 July 2025

Hegseth invited Rajnath Singh for in-person meeting, says MoD. This was their third telephonic conversation since Hegseth’s confirmation in January.

Good, Rajnath Singh ji must make a public statement that any future purchase commitments by the client India are contingent upon fulfilment of current delivery commitments by the supplier US.
Lindsay is a sideshow freak, his statements are orchestrated to keep India on the back foot. Ignore him.

[Aditya_V]

I dont think everything can be put out in public, the idea is to get issue sorted instead of public fanfare.

[Cyrano]

I dont think everything can be put out in public, the idea is to get issue sorted instead of public fanfare.

The issue is US state dept policy to squeeze India for it's own ends.

If India starts painting US and an unreliable supplier, it will hurt future sales to NATO countries and RoW.

[Cyrano]

Cyrano gaaru

Is it this stratfor? https://worldview.stratfor.com/topic

No Saar I meant our own Strategy Politics and international relations forum on BRF

[rrao]

HAL wants to use EL/M 2052 because its proven Radar and already in use with weapon integration. HAL had a very bad experience with LRDE during the development of multi-mode Radar (MMR) for LCA. HAL is responsible for delivering the aircraft with RADAR integrated with various weapon systems. The status of UTTAM RADAR is completely not known, whether all the modes of the RADAR have been flight tested on a test bed, integration of weapon systems, availability of RADAR test rigs, etc.. Already, HAL is facing flak for the delay in delivery , which is due to non-availability of GE engines so far and it can not take further beating and delaying deliveries further by using a partially tested UTTAM RADAR. The reaction of HAL is natural.

[Bharadwaj]

This astra business has me wondering what the test firing which was successful a few months back was about? Normal Mk1 with the 2032 radar? I was under the impression it was a MK1 lsp with the 2052 fitted.

[Rakesh]

An utterly incompetent Govt PSU. HAL is solely responsible for paving the way for the MRFA, one brick at a time. Read the headline of the news article. These people need to be shamed publicly. If HAL gets the AMCA contract, it will go the way of the Tejas Mk1A. That will result in the Govt importing a phoren 5th gen fighter. The circle of life continues with HAL.

Not a single private player should team up with HAL for the AMCA program. It will be a disaster for them.

We are game for competition: HAL Chief
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ ... 769034.ece
04 July 2025

In May, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved the execution model for AMCA and opened the doors for the private sector to compete with the Bengaluru-headquartered defence PSU.

The Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL), which will have to compete with private firms for manufacturing India’s indigenous fifth generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme, has welcomed the government’s move to involve private players. In May, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved the execution model for AMCA and opened the doors for the private sector to compete with the Bengaluru-headquartered defence PSU to manufacture the indigenous fifth generation fighter jet.

End of Monopoly

This move ended the monopoly which HAL enjoyed for years when it came to the building prototypes and manufacturing of fighter jets. HAL chairman and managing director D.K. Sunil said that the PSU had no problem with this move by the government. “We have no problem with that; we are a very capable company and we are not really afraid of competition. The idea is to develop alternative players to HAL so we are ok with that. We will definitely participate [in the bidding] and we are willing to work with partners to see how to take it forward,” Dr. Sunil told The Hindu. “I would not take it in a negative sense that our monopoly is ending in that sense. We are a government company and we have been working since 85 years in the interest of the nation; so I think we are ok with that. We do not see any issue in that,” he added.

End of Monopoly

Asked if HAL had responded to the Expression of Interest (EoI) issued by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) which is executing the programme, Dr. Sunil said, “The last date is sometime in August. So we will definitely work on this. We are still discussing, we are looking at the details of how the evaluation will be done. We have already issued an EoI to 21 of our partners who have responded that they are interested.” He added that there were three options before HAL — either to go solo or as a consortium, or go as a joint venture — and that it will evaluate and take a decision in the coming month.

LCA Delays

On the delay in the delivery schedule for the LCA Mk-1A variant and on the criticism by Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh, the HAL chairman reiterated that it was due to the GE Aerospace missing deadline for supply of engines. “The primary reason is the engine. When he (IAF chief) mentioned in February (about not being confident of HAL during Aero India) we did not have a single engine from GE though the airframe was ready,” Dr. Sunil said. He added that the first engine came in April and that GE had promised the second engine in July. “Apart from the engines we also have issues regarding the software, the radar, and the missiles. There have been some issues with iterations of the software so both these issues contributed but the engine was the most dominant,” he added.