Hindustan Aeronautics share price plunged 5% to the day’s low of Rs 3,470.05 after Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal A P Singh raised concerns over the delay in the delivery of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Mk1A. It is better known as the fighter jet Tejas. Singh said he is not confident in HAL.
Singh criticised HAL during Aero India 2025 which was taking place in Bengaluru.“You have to alleviate (our) worries and make us more confident. At the moment, I am just not confident of HAL, which is a very wrong thing to happen,” Singh said.
The IAF Chief remarked that HAL assured the delivery of 11 Tejas Mk1A aircraft in February. However, he was frustrated to see that not a single aircraft had been delivered. “I was promised that when I come here in February, 11 Tejas Mk1As would be ready. And not a single one is ready,” Singh remarked.
Also, Singh was disappointed with the Tejas aircraft that was being flown as he claimed they were not the Mk1A versions that were advertised. He said, ‘Mk1A’ could not simply be applied based on cosmetic changes or software updates. “The aircraft that you flew, calling it Mk1A. It is not an Mk1A.” The aircraft cannot be just a change of one software and looks, it needs to have those weapons and capability to be called as Mk1A.
ALSO READIAF Chief slams HAL over delayed deliveries of Tejas Aircraft
On Feb 11, 2025, ahead of Aero India, HAL acknowledged the delays but stated that they were due to a range of challenges, such as technical problems, rather than carelessness. Chairman and Managing Director D K Sunil said, “The delays are not simply attributable to laziness. We understand the concerns and are working diligently to resolve them.” Sunil further said that HAL was confident of delivering at least 11 Tejas Mk1A aircraft to the IAF by the end of March 2025.
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