The past few weeks have seen a swirl of speculation around India’s Tejas Mk2 fighter jet and whether it might swap its General Electric F414 engine for a French alternative from Safran. For an aircraft that has been under development for years, the idea of an engine switch has sparked curiosity

India received its third GE F404-IN20 engine for the Tejas Mk1A today, a development that once again underscores the country’s dependence on imported powerplants for its frontline fighters. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) continues to rely on the American-made engine to keep Tejas production moving, and when GE delays its shipments, as it has done in […]

India’s defence ambitions are no longer content with cosmetic “Make in India” tags or token technology transfers. The latest signal is New Delhi’s blunt demand that French aerospace giant Safran not only co-develop a fighter jet engine for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) but also hand over complete technology and intellectual property rights (IPR). […]