Boost for Air Force: Govt to purchase 97 LCA Mk1A aircraft; Rs 62,370 crore deal made with HAL

NEW DELHI: The ministry of defence on Thursday signed a Rs 62,370 crore contract with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the procurement of 97 LCA Mk1A aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF), including 68 fighters and 29 twin-seaters, along with associated equipment.The delivery of these aircraft would commence during 2027-28 and be completed over a period of six years. The aircraft will have an indigenous content of over 64%, with 67 additional items incorporated, over and above the previous LCA Mk1A contract signed in January 2021, the ministry of defence said. The integration of advanced indigenously developed systems such as the UTTAM Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar, Swayam Raksha Kavach, and control surface actuators will further strengthen the Aatmanirbharta initiatives. The project is being supported by a robust vendor base of nearly 105 Indian companies directly engaged, the ministry said.HAL recently also received the third GE-404 engine for the LCA-MK1A (Tejas Mk1A) and another engine is expected to be delivered shortly. The MK1A variant of the LCA includes improvements in combat avionics and air-to-air refuelling capabilities.The Nashik division of HAL has a total of 2,207 employees, including 1,188 technical experts, 624 experts for technical support and 395 engineers.