The Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking at procuring 97 additional indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Mk1A fighter jets at an estimated cost of ₹1.15 lakh crore, Air Chief Marshal V. R. Chaudhari said on October 3.
The procurement will take the LCA-MK1A fleet strength to 180. The IAF is looking at several contracts worth ₹2.5 lakh crore to ₹3 lakh crore in the next few years, he said.
On the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, he said the operational plans of the IAF were dynamic and can change as per the developing situation. He said that in places where the IAF “cannot counter in terms of numbers”, it will do so through “better tactics”.
Acknowledging the delays in the delivery of the S-400 air defence systems from Russia due to the war in Ukraine, the Air chief said three regiments had been delivered and expressed confidence that the remaining two would be delivered next year. The Air chief was addressing the annual press conference ahead of the 91st Air Force Day on October 8.
Elaborating on the modernisation plans and the indigenous push, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said the Army and the Air Force were looking at signing a contract for 156 Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) in the coming year. Of these, 66 would be be for the Air Force.
“The contract value we anticipate is ₹45,000 crore. Apart from that, we had already signed a ₹6,000-crore contract for 70 HTT-40 trainer aircraft. We have in the pipeline the upgrade of SU-30MKI, 84 of them; the value is anticipated to be a little over ₹6,000 crore,” he said.
The weapons systems Akash-NG, medium-range surface-to-air missile (MR-SAM), air defence system Pusa, ballistic missile system Pralav, and so on are among the contracts that the IAF is expecting to sign in the coming year, he said.
“The overall value of these contracts will be well past ₹2.5 lakh crore-₹3 lakh crore... Contracts will be expected to be fulfilled in about seven to eight years. So we will plan our budget accordingly,” the Air chief said, noting that most of the acquisitions were indigenous.
In 2021, the Defence Ministry signed a ₹48,000-crore deal with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) to supply 83 LCA-Mk1A, a more capable fighter than the current LCA-Mk1 in service. As per the contract, three LCA-Mk1A are scheduled to be delivered to the IAF in February 2024 and 16 aircraft would be delivered per year for the subsequent five years.
Officials said the deliveries of the larger LCA-Mk2 are expected to commence from 2032, by when the delivery of all LCA-Mk1A is expected to be completed.
‘Will remain deployed’
To a question on the situation in eastern Ladakh, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said the situation remained what it was in the past one year. There have been disengagements in certain contested areas, but complete disengagement has not taken place yet, he said. “We will continue to remain deployed till complete disengagement takes place.”
Since the stand-off in eastern Ladakh, India and China have undertaken disengagement from five friction points, while negotiations are stuck over two points — Depsang Plains and Demchok.
The IAF is making note of the build-up of resources and capabilities across the borders, he said on the Chinese build-up along the LAC.
“Our focus will remain to be dynamic at all times and not have a fixed mindset in terms of deployment of assets in particular areas. But we have very flexible and dynamic war plans which we keep revising every now and then based on the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) inputs that we get,” he said.
On Chinese deployment of radars near Mansarovar, he said the Air Force was looking at inducting long-range mountain radars to “see equally deep inside the adversary’s territory”.
Noting that China and Pakistan were transferring technology, he said Pakistan was manufacturing JF-17 fighter aircraft and also inducting the J-10. “We keep an eye on the developments between these two countries.”
In his opening remarks, the Air Chief Marshal said that owing to the volatile and uncertain geopolitical landscape in the region, the need to have a “strong and credible” military has become an “imperative”. The Indo-Pacific region is the new economic and strategic centre of gravity of the world and offers us both challenges and opportunities, he said, adding, “IAF, with its inherent capability to see the farthest, reach the fastest and hit the hardest, will be critical in mitigating these challenges and will remain a fulcrum in projecting India’s might in the region.”
Talking of the role of the IAF, the Air chief said the force had played an important role in all wars fought by India, undertaken “punitive air strikes” when called upon, extricated the Indian diaspora from conflict zones and provided succour and relief through Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) missions within and beyond the country’s borders.
The IAF carried out Operation Kaveri to evacuate Indian citizens from Sudan, where it flew 22 sorties (for 115 hours), extricated 2,100 persons and carried 58 tonnes of critical load. During Operation Dost to aid Türkiye and Syria, the IAF flew 28 sorties (for 188 hours) and carried 307 tonnes of load.
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