GE Engine Delays Expose India’s Biggest Defence Weakness

By BPN News Desk April 2, 2026

Op-Eds Opinion

India’s Tejas Mk1A program was supposed to mark a turning point. An indigenous fighter, built at scale, ready to replace aging fleets and strengthen the Indian Air Force’s thinning squadron numbers. Instead, it has exposed a far more uncomfortable truth. India can now build fighter jets, but it

Op-Eds Opinion

Tejas Mk2 and the Engine Dilemma: Why HAL Won’t Ditch GE

By BPN News Desk September 26, 2025

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 and headlines. But as […]

Editorials Opinion

India’s Jet Engine Journey: From Catching Up to Breaking Free

By BPN News Desk September 11, 2025

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 […]

Op-Eds Opinion

GE’s 80%, Safran’s 100%: Why New Delhi Is Done Playing Apprentice

By BPN News Desk August 25, 2025

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). […]