Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has received seven GE F404-IN20 engines for India’s LCA Tejas Mk1A programme. GE Aerospace has reportedly assured HAL that it will dispatch an additional 20 to 22 units before 31 December 2026. With this input, HAL is confident that a major bottleneck will be cleared and that it will be ableContinue reading “First LCA Tejas Mk1A Squadron By March 2027 — Engines Trickle As India Solves Integration Issues”
Category Archives: Defence & Aerospace
Beyond the Cockpit: Air Marshal Anil Chopra on the IAF, Modern Air Warfare, and Surviving a 22-G Ejection
Air Marshal Anil Chopra—known for his distinguished flying career and his post-military service shaping defence policy through strategic think tanks like CAPS (Centre for Air Power Studies) and advisory bodies in military justice and SIDM (Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers)—recently sat down on Dostcast to unpack India’s operational readiness. From evaluating the multi-domain capabilities ofContinue reading “Beyond the Cockpit: Air Marshal Anil Chopra on the IAF, Modern Air Warfare, and Surviving a 22-G Ejection”
Indian Missiles Pushing Ahead With Precision and Reach
On May 8, 2026, India successfully flight-tested an advanced Agni-5 missile equipped with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. This test (a Mission Divyastra sequel) enables a single missile to deliver multiple nuclear warheads to different targets, significantly enhancing India’s strategic deterrence. India’s Defence Research and DevelopmentContinue reading “Indian Missiles Pushing Ahead With Precision and Reach”
F-35 For India: Delhi Quietly Ignored Trump’s Soft Pitch For U.S. Stealth Fighters That Turkey & Saudi Chase
The United States (US) floated a pitch to supply India with advanced Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets. US President Donald Trump publicly stated that Washington was paving the way to provide India with the fifth-generation aircraft. In February 2025, during Indian PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the US, Trump told a joint news conference,Continue reading “F-35 For India: Delhi Quietly Ignored Trump’s Soft Pitch For U.S. Stealth Fighters That Turkey & Saudi Chase”
Why China Pulled Ahead of India in Fighter Jet Engine Race Despite Both Nations Starting in the Mid-1980s? OPED
China has quietly achieved what few others have managed — fitting its J-20 stealth fighters with fully indigenous engines, while India remains far behind despite both nations starting their jet engine programmes around the mid-1980s. After years of development, Beijing’s WS-15 is now in serial production and powers the stealth J-20 aircraft. This is aContinue reading “Why China Pulled Ahead of India in Fighter Jet Engine Race Despite Both Nations Starting in the Mid-1980s? OPED”
USA Wooing Islamic Friends: Pakistan and Turkey – F-35 For Turkey & Mediation for Pakistan- Implications
US President Donald Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Turkey and signalled openness to restoring Ankara‘s access to the top-end fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets, which had been denied after Turkey acquired the Russian S-400 air defence system. Also, the US may clear engines for Turkey‘s homegrown KAAN fighter aircraft. Turkey is reportedly seeking anContinue reading “USA Wooing Islamic Friends: Pakistan and Turkey – F-35 For Turkey & Mediation for Pakistan- Implications”
Russian Doomsday Plane Flies to Tehran – Time to Understand These Airborne Command Posts
Russia dispatched a Tupolev Tu-214PU airborne command post, often referred to as a “Doomsday plane“, to Tehran‘s Imam Khomeini International Airport. Tu-214PU aircraft, registration number RA-64531, operating under call-sign RSD420, took off from Moscow and landed in Tehran at around 10:10 am (IST) on July 13. The deployment coincided with escalating U.S. and Israeli airstrikesContinue reading “Russian Doomsday Plane Flies to Tehran – Time to Understand These Airborne Command Posts”
How the Sukhoi Design Bureau Overtook the Great Mikoyan Design Bureau
During the Cold War, the Mikoyan-Gurevich (MiG) design bureau held a monopoly on frontline fighters (like the MiG-21 and MiG-29), while the Sukhoi Design Bureau (Sukhoi) specialized in strike aircraft. Sukhoi seems to have surpassed the legendary MiG pack due to the massive success of the Su-27 “Flanker” family. Mikoyan’s financial struggles following the SovietContinue reading “How the Sukhoi Design Bureau Overtook the Great Mikoyan Design Bureau”
F414 “Trap”: After 3X Price Hike, Why Swapping U.S. GE Engines for India’s Tejas Mk-2 & AMCA Won’t Be Easy
Commercial negotiations for the GE F414 engine, selected to power India’s Tejas Mk-2 and the initial variants of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), have hit a serious roadblock. Despite an earlier agreement on technology transfer, GE Aerospace has sharply escalated its price demands — nearly tripling the per-unit cost. Initial estimates had put theContinue reading “F414 “Trap”: After 3X Price Hike, Why Swapping U.S. GE Engines for India’s Tejas Mk-2 & AMCA Won’t Be Easy”
“Too Big to Fail”: How Pakistan Plays Both Superpowers — U.S. & China — For Endless Bailouts & Staying Relevant: OPED
Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir arrived in Switzerland for the Iran Peace talks. Qatar’s foreign ministry announced “the launch of the Lake Lucerne Summit and the first meeting of the high-level committee with the participation of representatives from the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the twoContinue reading ““Too Big to Fail”: How Pakistan Plays Both Superpowers — U.S. & China — For Endless Bailouts & Staying Relevant: OPED”