ET Interview | GE eyes engine deal for India’s stealth fighter, ramps up jet deliveries

US’ General Electric (GE) will vie for the contract to make engines for the Indian Air Force’s fifth-generation stealth fighter or advanced medium combat aircraft, chairman and chief executive Larry Culp told ET in an interview.

Culp said the aerospace major considers India a strategically important market for both the civil and defence aerospace businesses.

“We are very interested,” he said. “If you look at what we're doing with the Tejas with our 404 engines, we are right in the middle of probably what matters most in that regard. The US and India enjoy a very strong relationship. So we are here, we want to be supportive and are engaged so we possibly can be.”

Last month, India announced a long-awaited plan to fast-track the development of an indigenous fifth-generation stealth fighter. The announcement came days after Operation Sindoor against Pakistan.

One of the most critical components—a high-thrust engine—will likely be developed through a joint venture with a foreign manufacturer. GE will face competition on this from rivals such as Safran and Rolls-Royce.

Eyeing more volumes in India: Culp

GE is also stepping up the delivery of jet engines to plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) for the Tejas Mark-1A fighter, which has been much delayed. In March, GE delivered the first of 99 F-404 engines, around two years behind schedule.

“That is our intent and we've communicated that to everyone,” Culp said. “We are working with the suppliers to ramp their capability. We're making good progress. I just look at April and May of this year compared to where we were in the first quarter—we've seen a double-digit increase in the number of receipts.”

IAF chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh recently voiced concerns about delays in the procurement of critical military platforms. Both military programmes and commercial airline sales are increasingly being delayed due to the inability of manufacturers to ramp up production.

Culp said that though multiple actions are being taken to lessen the impact, it will be a while before the problem is solved.

“We are making a tremendous amount of progress not only in GE but across the industry,” he said. “But when you look at the demand expectations that only increase every year, we're going to be talking about supply chain for a while. That’s just the nature of the challenge where we are in a super cycle.”

GE will also look to set up a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility for civilian aircraft engines in India once the volume increases.

“I think that's more a matter of when, as opposed to if,” he said. “We want to make sure we have the underlying volume in the marketplace that would support those investments.”

GE has more than 1,400 engines operating in India, powering both narrow and wide-body aircraft and an order book for around 2,500 more.

“The number is sufficient to say that India is a priority country for us,” Culp said.