HAL · Aeronautical Development Agency
Tejas The Light Combat Aircraft
India's own. Born to dominate the skies — a single-engine, fourth-generation multirole light fighter.
India's own. Born to dominate the skies — a single-engine, fourth-generation multirole light fighter.
The Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas is an Indian single-engine, fourth-generation, multirole light fighter designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) with HAL's Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) for the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy. In 2003 it was officially named "Tejas."
The full timeline →
Compact. Agile. Built for the full mission spectrum — air defence, strike and reconnaissance.
FIG. A — AIRFRAME / DELTA PLANFORMTejas, a delta-wing fighter, is built from aluminium-lithium alloys, carbon-fibre composites and titanium. Carbon-fibre composites make up about 45% of the airframe by weight and 90% of its surface area, including the wing skins, spars and ribs.
FIG. B — GLASS COCKPIT / NVG-COMPATIBLENVG-compatible across the cockpit, with smart standby and fail-safe redundancy.
An NVG-compatible glass cockpit: a domestically-developed head-up display (HUD), multi-function displays, two Smart Standby Display Units and a helmet-mounted display, all tied to a quadruplex digital fly-by-wire flight-control system.
A helmet-mounted display keeps the head up and the airframe in the fight.
FIG. C — PROPULSION / AFTERBURNING TURBOFANThe Mk1 and Mk1A are powered by the GE F404-IN20 afterburning turbofan; the future Mk2 moves to the more powerful GE F414-INS6. The indigenous Kaveri engine programme continues in parallel.
Compact, agile and unmistakably Indian — the Tejas in the element it was built for.
Dimensions, weights, speed, engine, radar and weapons for the Mk1, Mk1A and Mk2.
Read → VariantsWhat changed between each version, and where Mk1A deliveries stand.
Read → EngineThe engine that powers today's Tejas, and the one India will build next.
Read → AvionicsGlass cockpit, fly-by-wire, and the AESA radars that set the Mk1A apart.
Read → AirframeWhy the Tejas has no tailplane, and what its airframe is made of.
Read → TimelineFrom programme launch to first flight, induction and the Mk1A order book.
Read → GalleryOfficial imagery of the Mk1A, the squadrons, the naval prototypes and the milestones.
Read → FAQSpeed, engine, radar, fleet size, Mk1A deliveries, the Mk2 and cost, in short sourced answers.
Read →The LCA (Light Combat Aircraft) Tejas is an Indian single-engine, fourth-generation, multirole light fighter designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) with HAL's Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) for the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy. It was officially named "Tejas" in 2003.
Official figures differ: HAL quotes Mach 1.6 and Jane's Mach 1.8, reached at high altitude — roughly 1,700–1,910 km/h there. Full specifications.
The Tejas Mk1 and Mk1A are powered by the GE F404-IN20 afterburning turbofan. The Tejas Mk2 moves to the more powerful GE F414-INS6, while the indigenous Kaveri engine programme continues in parallel.
Yes. The Tejas is designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and built by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) — an indigenous Indian programme — for the Indian Air Force.
Naval prototypes proved it can: the first arrested landing on INS Vikramaditya on 11 January 2020, a ski-jump take-off the next day, and a landing on INS Vikrant on 6 February 2023. As a technology demonstrator, the naval Tejas paved the way for India's next carrier fighter, the Twin Engine Deck-Based Fighter (TEDBF).
The Indian Air Force has received all 40 Tejas Mk1 it ordered — 32 fighters and 8 twin-seat trainers — with the last two delivered in September 2026. A further 180 Tejas Mk1A are on order. See all variants.
HAL has 27 Mk1A airframes built and is completing radar and weapons integration as GE F404 engine deliveries ramp up. The first handovers to the IAF are targeted for around the end of 2026.
HAL has presented the Tejas to several air forces abroad, and Argentina, Egypt, Nigeria and the Philippines have shown interest in it.
A tailless compound delta-wing design built from aluminium-lithium alloys, carbon-fibre composites and titanium; carbon-fibre composites make up about 45% of the airframe by weight and about 90% of its surface area.
India's own light combat aircraft — designed, built and proven at home.