MoD HAL ink Rs 26K crore contract for 240 Sukhoi engines
In a boost to being self-reliant, the Ministry of Defence (MoD), on Monday, signed a Rs 26,000 Crore contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to produce 240 engines for the fleet of Sukhoi 30-MKI fighter jets in the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The Sukhoi uses a ‘AL-31FP’ engine designed in Russia. Public Sector giant HAL – the Ministry of Defence holds a majority stake in it -- will produce the engines at its plant at Koraput, Odisha.
HAL would supply 30 aero-engines per annum as per the contractual delivery schedule. The supply of all 240 engines would be completed over the period of next eight years, the MoD said on Monday.
The engines will have an indigenous content over 54 per cent, enhanced due to indigenisation of some key components of aero-engines. HAL plans to take support from the country’s defence manufacturing ecosystem, involving MSMEs and public and private industries.
The Cabinet Committee on Security, had, on September 2, okayed a proposal for procurement of 240 engines to power the Sukhoi- 30 MKI jets. The IAF has 272 of these jets of Russian parentage and form the biggest fleet of the IAF jets.
In the past HAL and its suppliers had been supplying sub-parts of the engines and the servicing and overhaul of the engines is done at Koraput.
With Russia being involved in a conflict with Ukraine the supply of engines was suffering, sources said adding, the Sukhoi fleet has some planes that are now more than 20 years old. Engines of a jet are changed after a certain number of flying hours.
The Sukhoi – a twin engine jet -- is one of the most powerful and strategically-significant fleet of IAF. The supply of these aero-engines by HAL would meet the fleet sustenance requirement of IAF to continue their unhindered operations and strengthen the defence preparedness of the country.
The contract was inked by the senior officials of MoD and HAL in the presence of Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari.
