Our pseudonymous analyst Mark is back with his take on the story so far of the IAF’s quest for fighter aircraft. He last contributed a much talked-about two-part analysis of the MMRCA tender in April 2012.
Air Marshal M Matheshwaran analyzes exactly why the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft will never fully meet the ASR and cannot become the IAF ‘s frontline fighter in the Lo segment.
Air Marshal M Matheswaran (retired) goes back in history to examine the reasons why the Light Combat Aircraft project has failed to meet expectations.
After spending USD 30 billion on the FGFA and USD 20 billion on the MMRCA, the Indian Air Force will be left with a serious shortfall of at least 14 squadrons in 2032, going by the ‘best-case scenario’.
Carter is looking at the Indian defense ministry to make it easier for US companies to do business with it and wants resolution of issues related to offsets, limitation of liability and delays in decision-making.
This is the second and concluding installment of the two-part analysis of the process of acquisition of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The naval LCA is still not ideally suitable for carrier-based operations, with the current GE-F404 engine slightly underpowered. This will change with the development of the naval version of the LCA Mk II, which will be powered by the GE-F414 engine.
