HAL to Hand Over Final Tejas Mk-1 Trainers and First HTT-40 Trainers to IAF in Bengaluru

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will on Friday, 18 September 2026, hand over the last two Light Combat Aircraft Tejas Mk-1 twin-seat trainers and the first three production HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft to the Indian Air Force at its Bengaluru facility, bringing two long-running indigenous aviation programmes to an important stage of completion and rollout.

The ceremony will be attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu and Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh, reflecting the significance the government is attaching to the deliveries. The Ministry of Defence has described the occasion as a milestone in India’s self-reliance programme, highlighting HAL’s work with industry partners in designing, developing and manufacturing aircraft for military and civil use.

The Tejas handover will formally close the original 40-aircraft Light Combat Aircraft Mk-1 order, a contract that was split into two phases: 20 aircraft in Initial Operational Clearance configuration ordered in March 2006, and another 20 in Final Operational Clearance configuration ordered in December 2010. With 38 aircraft already delivered, the two twin-seat trainers being handed over on Friday will complete that original commitment.

The original Mk-1 contract comprised 32 single-seat fighters and eight twin-seat trainers. The final two FOC trainers include enhanced radar performance, improved autopilot handling, upgraded fuel systems and avionics software, and a software-defined radio for secure communications. Their role is to support conversion and operational training for fighter pilots while preserving the handling characteristics of the combat aircraft.

With the completion of the Mk-1 order, HAL’s production attention is now moving to the next two Tejas Mk-1A contracts, which together cover 180 aircraft. The first of these orders, for 83 aircraft, was placed in February 2021, followed by a second order for 97 aircraft in September 2025. Deliveries under both contracts have been held up by delays in the supply of GE F404-IN20 engines.

The same event will also see the delivery of the first three HTT-40 aircraft, marking the first production batch under a ₹6,838-crore contract signed in March 2023 for 70 basic trainers. Two of the aircraft were built in Bengaluru and one in Nashik. HAL had planned to deliver 12 aircraft in financial year 2025-26, but no handovers could take place until Honeywell addressed global supply-chain bottlenecks affecting the TPE331-12B turboprop engine. The first three engines arrived at HAL in mid-2026.

Under the arrangement, Honeywell will supply the first 16 engines from the United States, while HAL will manufacture the remaining engines in India through a technology-transfer arrangement. The HTT-40 programme is intended to reduce dependence on imported trainers for the opening stage of pilot training.

The HTT-40 is a tandem-seat, fully aerobatic turboprop aircraft designed for Stage-I, or ab-initio, training of newly inducted Indian Air Force pilots. It is fitted with an air-conditioned glass cockpit, indigenous avionics, hot-refuelling capability and Martin-Baker zero-zero ejection seats. The aircraft is meant to supplement, and eventually reduce reliance on, the Swiss-origin Pilatus PC-7 Mk II fleet now used for foundational flying training.

HAL has set up production lines for the HTT-40 at both Bengaluru and Nashik, with a combined annual capacity of up to 20 aircraft.

In the same ceremony, HAL will also hand over four Dhruv Next Generation helicopters to Pawan Hans Limited. Officials expected at the event include Secretary (Defence Production) Sanjeev Kumar, Secretary (Civil Aviation) Samir Kumar Sinha and HAL Chairman and Managing Director Ravi K.

The government has said the induction of these platforms is aimed at strengthening indigenous design and manufacturing capability while reducing dependence on foreign suppliers for both combat conversion training and basic pilot training.