Indian Air Force’s strength will increase, approval given to buy 240 aero-engines for Sukhoi-30

New Delhi: The government has taken a big decision to make the Indian Air Force even stronger. The Cabinet Committee on Security on Monday approved the purchase of 240 AL-31FP aero-engines for Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft. The Defense Ministry said that Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will make these engines under the ‘Buy (Indian)’ category. The deal is worth more than Rs 26,000 crore. HAL will start supplying these engines after a year and the entire delivery will be done in eight years.

Aero-engines are being made from indigenous parts

According to a statement from the Ministry of Defense, these aero-engines will have more than 54% indigenous content. This has been made possible by indigenization of certain components. These engines will be manufactured at HAL’s Koraput division. Sukhoi-30 MKI is one of the most powerful and strategically important fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force. The supply of these engines by HAL will meet the needs of the IAF and it will be able to work without any interruption. This will also strengthen the country’s defense preparedness.

Defense Minister will hold an important meeting tomorrow

Let us tell you that Defense Minister Rajnath Singh will hold an important meeting on Tuesday. In this meeting, many big projects will be discussed to make the Indian Army stronger. These include building seven new and very modern warships for the Indian Navy and replacing the old T-72 tanks of the Indian Army with new FRCV tanks. This meeting will be held in South Block. Many senior officials including the Chief of Defense Staff, the chiefs of the three armies, the Defense Secretary will be present in it.

Navy will buy warship under Project 17 Bravo

According to defence officials, the Indian Navy will buy seven new warships under Project 17 Bravo. These warships will be the most modern stealth frigates ever built in India. Defence sources have indicated that the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) may approve the issuance of a tender worth around Rs 70,000 crore to Indian shipyards under the ‘Make in India’ initiative. Shipyards such as Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, Goa Shipyard Limited and Larsen & Toubro may be involved in this tender. To expedite the project and avoid delays, the tender is expected to be split between the two shipyards, although specific details will be available only after the project is approved. At present, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders and Garden Reach Shipbuilders are building warships under Project 17A (Nilgiri-class), with four warships being built by MDL and three by GRSE.

The meeting will also discuss the Indian Army’s proposal to replace its Russian-origin T-72 tanks with 1,700 FRCVs. The Army plans to replace the T-72s with indigenous FRCVs, which will be built under the Make-1 process of the Defence Acquisition Procedure. Indian vendors will have to build the tanks with over 60 per cent indigenous content, and major companies such as Bharat Forge and Larsen & Toubro are expected to participate in the tender. The entire FRCV project, aimed at modernising the Army’s armoured regiments, is likely to cost over Rs 50,000 crore.