GE Aerospace Announces First Delivery Of F404-IN20 Engine For HAL’s Tejas Mk 1A Jets

US defence major GE Aerospace on Tuesday (25 March) delivered the first of 99 F404-IN20 engines to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft Mk 1A, The Hindu reported.

This marks the commencement of the deliveries for the the delayed programme.

“The first engine to power the LCA-Mk1A is currently undergoing the final round of checks on the test bed at the GE facility in Lynn. It is expected to arrive in India in April,” a defence source was quoted as saying by The Hindu.

The source added that the company is likely to deliver 12 engines in a year.

GE Aerospace has a long history of collaborating on military jet propulsion in India. The company partnered with the Aeronautical Development Agency in the 1980s.

Its F404-IN20 engine was chosen for the single-engine Tejas in 2004.

In 2021, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) ordered 99 F404-GE-IN20 engines and support services to power the single-engine Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) in a deal valued at $716 million.

GE Aerospace has so far delivered 65 F404 engines for the LCA Mk1 programme, and another 99 are on order for the LCA Mk1A variation.

Meanwhile, the company’s higher-thrust F414-GE-INS6 afterburning turbofan has been selected to power the next-gen LCA Mk2, which has increased range, and for the prototype development, testing, and certification of fifth-generation fighter jets — the most advanced class of military jets flying to date — for India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme.

The first AMCA jets will be twin-engine aircraft, and initially each will be powered by two F414s.

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