India’s pride, HAL Tejas in once again in the light with the recent reported crash on February 7.
According to reports, the Indian Air Force has reportedly grounded the entire Tejas fleet after a Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) crashed earlier this month.
This is the third accident of ‘India’s Pride’, which was inducted into the Indian Airforce in 2016. The accident comes at a time when India is close to inducting the advanced variant of Tejas Mk-1A.
While there have been no official revelations from the Indian Airforce regarding the accident.
According to sources, the crash happened on February 7 at a major forward airbase. It occurred during landing after a training flight. The pilot ejected safely from the single-seat jet, but the aircraft had major structural damage.
A defence ministry official said the first investigation points to a possible brake failure as the cause, according to the Telegraph.
Last November, an IAF pilot died when a Tejas fighter jet crashed and nosedived at an airshow in Dubai.
How does Tejas crash drain India’s Defence budget?
The Indian Air Force currently operates 31 MK-1 variants under its fleet, and it is a third loss, making a very high-profile loss in the already short airforce fleet.
A single Tejas Mk-1A variant jet costs around ₹640 crore, so losing one equates to an immediate ₹640 crore hit that taxpayers must absorb.
The production delays at HAL worsen the strain, as the budget already commits ₹62,370 crore for 97 more jets amid reliability doubts.
India’s indigenous dream at risk?
With three crash and grounding of the Tejas fleet as investigations continue, the loss of Tejas rasies concern over India’s indigenous dream.
Prime Minister Modi, a champion of “Make in India” in defence, hailed the Tejas as “India’s pride and a showcase of the strength and skills of 140 crore Indians” after flying it in 2023.
The government continues to position Tejas as the cornerstone of the Indian Air Force’s future fleet.
Tejas is India’s first indigenously developed fighter jet, though it uses a foreign engine. It features an aerial refuelling probe on the starboard side of the forward fuselage.
A 4.5-generation multi-role combat aircraft built for air defence, offensive air support, and close-combat missions. Tejas stands out as one of the lightest and smallest fighters in its class.
A key safety feature is the Martin-Baker zero-zero ejection seat. The system lets pilots eject safely even at zero altitude and zero speed, during takeoff, landing, or low-level maneuvers, by blasting off the canopy, launching the pilot clear, and deploying parachutes for a stable descent.
IAF’s shrinking fleet
The IAF, which is grappling with a shrinking fighter fleet, heavily relies on the indigenous LCA programme that specifically aims to replace the now-retired MiG-21 squadron.
The programme was launched in 1983 and has seen repeated setbacks. The delivery of the advanced Mk1A variant has been delayed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and has missed multiple deadlines. The IAF has placed an order for 180 Mk1As from HAL.
In 2025, Chief of Air Staff Air chief Marshal Amarpreet Singh voiced worries over HAL missing deadlines, pointing out that the company has never delivered any project on schedule.
The IAF currently has 29 fighter squadrons against the authorised strength of 42. An internal assessment following Operation Sindoor indicated that the air force may need to field more than the authorised number of squadrons to meet future challenges.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: ZEE News
