State-owned plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Thursday stated that five light combat aircraft (LCA) Mk1A are ready to be delivered to the Indian Air Force.
New Delhi: State-owned plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Thursday stated that five light combat aircraft (LCA) Mk1A are ready to be delivered to the Indian Air Force. The company also stated that nine more LCA Mk1A aircraft have been built and flown. However, it is awaiting for the delivery of engines from US major GE.
The clarification came a day after the reports that the HAL lost the Rs 15,000-crore project to build five prototypes of India’s 5th generation fighter aircraft Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme.
“HAL wishes to clarify the status of LCA MK1A deliveries to the customer for all stakeholders. HAL confirms that five aircraft are fully ready for delivery, incorporating major contracted capabilities in accordance with the agreed specifications,” HAL spokesperson Sreelatha Balasubramanian said in a statement.
“An additional nine aircraft have already been built and flown. Upon receipt of engines from GE, these aircraft will be made ready for delivery.”
“All design and development issues identified are being addressed in an expedited manner,” she added.
The plane maker also clarified that it is in active discussions with the Indian Air Force to deliver the aircraft at the earliest.
It should be noted that a total of five engines have been arrived in India from GE as on date.
“The supply position from GE is positive, and the future delivery outlook aligns with HAL’s delivery plans.”
As far as AMCA projects are concerned, there are three consortium which are in competition to bag the project. They are the TATA group, a solo bidder, followed by a consortium led by Bharat Forge Ltd, a part of the Kalyani Group, with defence public sector undertaking (DPSU) BEML Ltd and private-sector defence electronics firm Data Patterns (India) Ltd.
Another consortium led by private firm L&T, with DPSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) and private firm Dynamatics Technologies, is also in the race.
Among the companies in the fray, only TATA has the experience of setting up a final assembly line which they have done for the C-295 transport aircraft in partnership with Airbus.