‘Not a single project completed on time’: Air Chief Marshal flags delay in defence procurement

India’s Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh raised serious concerns about persistent delays plaguing the country’s defence procurement projects, highlighting stalled deliveries of critical military hardware, particularly indigenous systems.

“Many times, we know while signing contracts that those systems will never come. Timelines are a big issue. Not a single project I can think of is completed on time. Why should we promise something that cannot be achieved?” Singh said at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, according to a report by NDTV.

He specifically cited the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme, noting significant delays in deliveries of the Tejas Mk1A fighter jets, despite a Rs 48,000 crore contract signed with state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in February 2021. The first aircraft were due in March 2024, but none have been delivered yet.

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“Deliveries of Tejas Mk1 are delayed. The prototype of Tejas Mk2 is yet to roll out. There is no prototype yet of the stealth AMCA fighter,” Singh emphasised.

The Air Chief Marshal stressed the urgent need to align domestic defence production capabilities with strategic and operational demands under the government’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative.

“We cannot just talk about producing in India, we need to talk about designing. We need to have trust between the forces and industry. We need to be very open. Once we have committed to something, we should deliver. Air Force is trying to do its best to make in India,” Singh added.

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He also referenced India’s recent military action, Operation Sindoor, launched in retaliation for a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. The operation eliminated over 100 terrorists linked to Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba.

“Operation Sindoor, as it was told by the Chief of Naval Staff, the character of war is changing. Every day, we are finding new technologies coming in. Operation Sindoor has given us a clear idea of where we are headed and what we need in future. So a lot of work needs to be done in realigning our own thought processes also, which is already going on,” Singh noted.

Singh underlined the importance of timely defence procurement and emphasized the inclusion of private industry in developing the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), a stealth fighter program.

“AMCA - advanced medium combat aircraft has been cleared for even participation by private industry, which is a very big step, and that is the kind of confidence that the nation has in private industry today, and I’m sure this is going to pave the way to bigger things coming in the future,” he stated.

The Air Chief’s concerns are not new. In October last year, shortly after assuming office, Singh had warned that India had fallen behind China in military technology. “As far as production rates are concerned, we are way behind. We need to catch up,” he had said.

In February this year, Singh sparked controversy when an accidental recording captured him criticizing HAL, expressing frustration over unfulfilled commitments. “I was promised that when I come here in February, 11 Tejas Mk1As would be ready. And not a single one is ready. We all have worked there (in HAL). But I find that HAL is just not in mission mode,” he was heard saying.