HAL In Talks With General Electric Over Delay In Engines' Delivery: DK Sunil

DK Sunil, Chairman and Managing Director of Hindustan Aeronautics or HAL, said on Thursday that the PSU is in talks with American engine maker General Electric on the delay in the delivery of engines for Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA). Sunil said that General Electric has assured that the company is trying to deliver engines under the LCA Mark 1A Program. He added that the American engine maker GE has some supply chain issues, which is an outcome of the Covid-related shutting down of industries.

"There has been some small delay and we are talking to General Electric and they have assured us that they will put in the best efforts to see that the engines are delivered in time. They are having some supply chain issues, which is the outcome of the Covid-related shutting down of industries. So they are having to recertify parts. So we are in contact with them, and they have assured us that they will do the best to see that our program is not impacted," Sunil said.

For context, the LCA Mark 1A programme was conceptualised after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power. One order worth Rs 48,000 crore for 83 planes has already been placed and another one expected to be worth Rs 65,000 crore is going to be placed for 97 planes by the end of this financial year. The Defence Ministry has already issued a tender to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the purchase of 97 made-in-India LCA Mark 1A fighter jets. This tender is the largest order for indigenous military hardware ever to be placed by the Indian government.

Recently issued by the Defence Ministry to HAL, the company has been given a three-month timeframe to respond. HAL Chairman and MD further stated that the latency by GE does not affect HAL's manufacturing activities of the aircraft. "We will build the aircraft; we will get them ready and I'm sure we will be able to sort out this supply issue with General Electric," he added. Sharing information about the status of negotiations for GE F414 engines, Sunil said that the negotiations will start and we expect to wrap up these negotiations and finalise the contract in the coming months.

"So that is on track and we will be discussing with GE to finalise the contract by midway through next year. A large number of indigenous aircraft projects, including the LCA Mark 1A, Mark 2 and AMCA, are being undertaken in the country," he added. On the manufacturing status of LCAs, Sunil said that HAL has two factories operating in Bangalore, which produce eight aircraft each and the third one is started in Nasik, where the production will start next year.

"So we will have a capability of 24 aircraft per annum. So the current order of 83 plus the anticipated order of 97 totalling 280 aircraft, we plan to finish it in by seven to eight years max," he added. Talking to ANI, HAL Chairman and MD Sunil further informed that the upgrade program for Su-30MKIs, which was ordered by the Defence Acquisition Council, is in the advanced stage and is expected to be completed within this financial year. "The 12 additional Su-30 orders are expected in this financial year itself. And the government is well aware of it and it will happen this year," he added.

Speaking about the export opportunities for LCA and the LCH, he said, “Both of them are attractive in the international market. The USP of these products is that they are designed in the country, the IPs are based in the country, the software, the hardware.. so many countries are interested that we have an independent capability.”

"So definitely, we are pitching to a lot of countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. And we are making their pilots come and fly this aircraft to get a feel for it. So there is a lot of interest, but these international deals take some time to fructify. So we are hopeful that in the coming year, we should have some results on this," he added. (ANI)