Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is beginning to ease the engine-supply bottleneck that has held back TEJAS MK-1A production and delayed deliveries to the Indian Air Force (IAF) NDTV Profit reported.

The MK-1A was meant to begin replacing parts of the IAF’s ageing fighter fleet from 2024. Instead, deliveries slipped largely because GE Aerospace’s F404-IN20 engines did not arrive at the required pace.

That constraint is now easing. GE shipped three further F404-IN20 engines to HAL during August, taking the total delivered to 10, compared with six at the end of financial year 2025–26.

HAL has accumulated a substantial inventory of aircraft awaiting engines and final clearances. Goldman Sachs estimates that 27 MK-1A airframes are ready, although formal handovers remain dependent on final testing and acceptance activities.

HAL believes its current stock of 10 engines can support delivery of 10 TEJAS MK-1A fighters by March 2027. GE has also committed to supplying a further 12 engines by December 2026.

The engine supply improvement is significant because the TEJAS MK-1A production line had effectively built airframes faster than engines could be installed.

GE’s ₹5,375-crore 2021 contract covers 99 F404-IN20 engines for the first MK-1A order, while the wider IAF requirement stands at 180 MK-1A aircraft.

HAL’s recent handovers also point to a broader acceleration across its aviation portfolio. The company delivered two Tejas Final Operational Clearance twin-seat trainers and the first three HTT-40 basic trainers to the IAF, alongside four Dhruv NG helicopters for Pawan Hans.

However, the engine shortage was never the only obstacle to MK-1A deliveries. HAL chairman and managing director Ravi K has said that major weapon-integration work is complete, but some radar-software modifications and validation trials remain unfinished.

The remaining tests include confirming the aircraft’s behaviour while carrying missiles, including structural and aerodynamic checks during captive-carry flights before weapon-release trials.

HAL has indicated that the initial aircraft are close to completion, but the final portion of AESA radar and missile-integration work still needs to be cleared.

Citi has cautioned that better engine availability does not remove testing and IAF-acceptance risk. HAL has been flagging software, radar integration and weapons-validation work as parallel constraints since mid-2025, even as the F404 delivery issue dominated attention.

The next major catalyst for HAL is therefore likely to be the GE F414 manufacturing agreement rather than merely additional F404 deliveries. While the F404 issue concerns the execution of an existing import-supply contract, the F414 negotiations concern local production of a more powerful fighter engine and the extent of technology transfer to India.

HAL and GE Aerospace signed a preliminary agreement on F414 co-production during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s June 2023 state visit to the United States. The proposed arrangement centres on manufacture of the F414-GE-INS6 engine in India.

India’s Ministry of Defence has treated at least 80% technology transfer as a key requirement. This is considerably more ambitious than the F404 arrangement, under which HAL receives engines rather than manufacturing the complete powerplant domestically.

Negotiations have been delayed by differences over technology-transfer scope, intellectual-property access, pricing and commercial terms. The technical discussions are reported to have concluded earlier in 2026, leaving the commercial and contractual stage as the principal hurdle.

CLSA expects a stronger second half of 2026 for HAL, driven by improved F404 supplies, the start of MK-1A deliveries and possible conclusion of the F414 production agreement.

The strategic importance of the F414 deal extends far beyond TEJAS MK-1A. The engine is intended to power the TEJAS MK-2, the Twin-Engine Deck-Based Fighter and the initial version of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), India’s proposed fifth-generation stealth fighter.

A successful agreement would therefore support three future combat-aircraft lines and could give HAL a larger role in fighter-engine production rather than final aircraft assembly alone.

The urgency is reinforced by the IAF’s fighter-squadron position. Its authorised strength is 42 squadrons, while operational strength has fallen to about 29 squadrons.

Even if the F414 contract is concluded soon, the first India-manufactured engine is not expected to emerge before around 2029.

The F404 recovery matters for near-term TEJAS MK-1A deliveries; the F414 agreement will be the more consequential test of HAL’s industrial and technological trajectory over the next decade.

Agencies