Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) confirmed on Wednesday that it has received the fourth GE F404-IN20 engine from US-based GE Aerospace under a 2021 contract, following the handover of the third engine earlier in September.

The Tejas Mk1A fleet, ordered in an initial batch of 83 aircraft, requires 99 F404 engines under a $716 million deal signed with GE in 2021. However, global supply chain disruptions, including the failure of a key South Korean supplier, have pushed the original delivery schedule back to March 2025. HAL has been assured of 12 engines by the end of this financial year, but the slippage is already slowing the pace of aircraft deliveries.

HAL’s Nashik production line, inaugurated in April 2023 as the company’s third Tejas assembly facility, is ready to roll out fighters

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