Process to acquire new engines for Jaguar moves ahead

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The move to upgrade the IAF fleet of Jaguar deep-penetration strike aircraft with new, more powerful engines has inched ahead, with some of the hitches in the way being ironed out. The IAF is reportedly going in for the Honeywell 215IN engine to replace the original Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour. Honeywell is a US company which already has a footprint in India and a tie-up with state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to manufacture engines for the Donrier. According to a senior IAF officer, there were some issues over offset clauses involving HAL that had been holding up the process, but these have been ironed out. The next step is commercial and technical negotiations, though these could take some time to conclude, he added. The plan to re-equip Jaguars with new engines has been hanging fire since 2010 and the Air Chief had lamented the delay during the Aero India show held in Bengaluru during February this year. This comes in the backdrop of the IAF’s fighter strength dwindling and delays in fresh acquisitions. The IAF procured twin-engined Jaguar aircraft from the UK in 1979 and at present has six squadrons – Nos 5, 6, 14, 16, 27 and 224 based at Ambala, Gorakhpur and Jamnagar that operate this type. These were also licenced manufactured by HAL, with aircraft rolling off the assembly lines as late as 2007. Over the years the IAF has also modified the Jaguar with new generation navigation and attack avionics as well as integrating newer weapon systems and precision munitions. The rationale behind re-equipping this aircraft with a more powerful engine is to cater to increased payload and improve maneuverability.

Source:- Process to acquire new engines for Jaguar moves ahead