Aerospace and defence: Follow one offering through the chain
Civil aircraft, military platforms, weapons, satellites and launch vehicle makers
Follow one offering through the chain
A Tejas Mk1A fighter built in Bengaluru
Follow India's light fighter from a superalloy melt shop to an Air Force squadron.
Superalloys poured by a few melters
$11.75bnGE's 2026 deal for a casterThe engine's hottest parts start as nickel superalloy and titanium, melted under vacuum and then cast or forged by a small group of qualified suppliers, most of them abroad. Castings are such a pinch point that GE Aerospace agreed in September 2026 to buy the Ohio caster CPP for US$11.75 billion, a deal expected to close in 2027 after regulatory approval.2
Constraint Engine makers felt the castings squeeze even before Covid; GE is now buying a caster rather than wait for capacity. Ni NickelTi TitaniumCo CobaltRe RheniumAr ArgonMetal productsMachinery and equipmentA carbon-fibre skin from Indian labs
45%airframe weight in compositesMuch of a Tejas is not metal at all. Composites make up about 45% of the airframe's weight, says CSIR's National Aerospace Laboratories, which developed parts such as the fin, rudder and wing spars and passed the know-how to Tata Advanced Systems, now a supplier of Mk1A fin and rudder assemblies. The carbon fibre and resins are bought in.1,4
Constraint Each fibre and resin system is qualified for a specific aircraft, so switching to a new local supplier means fresh testing and certification. ACN AcrylonitrileEPX Epoxy resinsN2 Nitrogen gasEH Electric heatingPlastic and rubber productsTextiles and leatherAn American engine sets the pace
99F404 engines ordered in 2021Each Tejas Mk1A flies on one GE F404 turbofan, and HAL ordered 99 of them from GE Aerospace in 2021. Supply has lagged badly: the second engine of the order arrived only in July 2025, and a year later GE was still shipping in small batches, three in August 2026, while finished airframes waited for engines.3,4,8
Constraint IATA expects aircraft output to fall short of airline demand until 2031-2034, with engine production lagging airframes. Ni NickelTi TitaniumRe RheniumCo CobaltHf HafniumMachinery and equipmentMetal productsRadar and self-protection made at home
64%indigenous content, 97-jet orderIn the nose sits the Uttam active electronically scanned array radar developed by DRDO, and the jet carries an Indian self-protection suite, Swayam Raksha Kavach, plus locally made control-surface actuators. Systems like these took the September 2025 order for 97 more jets to over 64% indigenous content, and nearly 105 Indian companies make its detailed components.5
Constraint AESA radar modules use gallium-based chips, and each new system or software build must be certified again for the platform. Ga GalliumGe GermaniumREE Rare earthsAu GoldESG Electronic specialty gasesSemiconductorsComputers and electronicsSoftware and IT servicesPrivate firms build wings and fuselage
11,750jobs a year, 97-jet orderHAL no longer builds every section itself. In July 2025 L&T handed over the first Mk1A wing set from its Coimbatore plant, and private firms such as VEM Technologies and Alpha Tocol make the centre and rear fuselage, which HAL calls a parallel structural assembly line. The defence ministry expects the 97-jet order to support about 11,750 direct and indirect jobs a year.4,5
Constraint L&T plans four wing sets a year at first, rising to 12 with automation; each part is tooled and certified for one programme. Al AluminiumTi TitaniumSt SteelAdh Adhesives and sealantsPnt Paints and coatingsMetal productsVehicles, ships, rail, aircraftHAL integrates and flies it
₹1.78tnIndia's defence output, 2025-26In Bengaluru, and since October 2025 on a third line at Nashik, Hindustan Aeronautics joins structures, engine, radar and weapons into a finished fighter and flight-tests it. The Nashik line adds eight jets a year, taking HAL's capacity to 24. India's defence output reached a record ₹1.78 lakh crore in 2025-26, with private firms' share up to 24%.9,6,3
Constraint With room for 24 jets a year, HAL's binding limit is engines: completed airframes wait for F404 deliveries from GE. St SteelTi TitaniumREE Rare earthsEPX Epoxy resinsExp Explosives and propellantsVehicles, ships, rail, aircraftSemiconductorsComputers and electronicsAirworthiness clearance for every change
83jets in the February 2021 contractBefore the Air Force accepts a jet, CEMILAC, the military airworthiness regulator under DRDO, must certify that the aircraft, its engine and its airborne stores are fit to fly, and it keeps approving modifications and upgrades for the jet's whole service life. The first Tejas contract, for 83 jets, was signed in February 2021; each new weapon or radar mode needs its own clearance.10,11
Constraint There is one military airworthiness authority and nothing flies without it; each weapon or radar mode needs fresh trials before clearance. Public administration, defence and securityAn Air Force waiting for squadrons
180Tejas ordered by IAF (calculated)The Indian Air Force has ordered 180 Tejas in two contracts (calculated): 83 signed in 2021 for about ₹48,000 crore, and 97 signed in September 2025 for ₹62,370 crore, with deliveries from 2027-28 over six years. They take over from the MiG-21, retired in 2025, and are paid for from a US$92.1 billion military budget, the world's fifth largest in 2025.10,5,9,7
Constraint Deliveries trail orders: the 97-jet contract runs from 2027-28 to about 2033-34 (calculated), so engine delays keep squadron numbers low for longer. Oil Crude oilJet Aviation propulsionFinance: banking, insurance, marketsPublic administration, defence and securityWhat the chain shows
The airframe is increasingly Indian; the engine and its superalloy castings remain the chokepoint, and the opportunity for Indian industry.
Sources
- Composite Parts for LCA-Tejas from CSIR-NAL: Helping Nation Build Modern Fighter Aircrafts (undated; reports a HAL order of August 2022) CSIR News (CSIR-NIScPR), 2022
- GE Aerospace moves to secure critical engine casting capacity Leeham News, 2026
- US defence giant GE Aerospace delivers fresh batch of 3 F404-IN20 engines to HAL News On AIR (Prasar Bharati), 2026
- HAL receives first set of wing assemblies for LCA Mk1A from L&T (PTI) Business Standard, 2025
- MoD signs Rs 62,370 crore contract with HAL for procurement of 97 LCA Mk1A aircraft for IAF (Ministry of Defence release) Office of the Raksha Mantri, Government of India, 2025
- Defence production soars to a record Rs 1.78 lakh crore in Financial Year 2025-26 (Ministry of Defence release) Office of the Raksha Mantri, Government of India, 2026
- Global military spending rise continues as European and Asian expenditures surge Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), 2026
- Aerospace supply chain bottlenecks continue to constrain airlines International Air Transport Association (IATA), 2025
- Raksha Mantri inaugurates 3rd Production Line of LCA Mk1A & 2nd Production Line of HTT-40 at HAL Nashik (Ministry of Defence release) Office of the Raksha Mantri, Government of India, 2025
- Contract for 83 Light Combat Aircraft Tejas handed over to HAL at Aero India 2021 Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence, 2021
- CEMILAC: what we do Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), 2026