The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has contracted state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to produce 12 Su-30MKI fighter jets for the Indian Air Force.
The 135-billion rupee ($1.5 billion) contract is an effort to make up for losses.
The sanctioned strength of the Su-30 fleet is 272 aircraft but only 259 are in service.
“The supply of these aircraft would enhance the operational capability of the Indian Air Force and strengthen defence preparedness of the country,” the MoD stated in a press release.
HAL will manufacture the Russian-origin aircraft at its Nashik division with over 62.6 percent indigenous content. The aircraft are license-produced in India.
‘Super’ Sukhoi Upgrade
An Indian-specific variant of the Russian Su-30, the Su-30MKI was inducted into the Indian Air Force in 2002.
The twin-engine aircraft has a takeoff weight of 38,800 kilograms (85,539 pounds) and a payload capacity of over 8 tons, including air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, and anti-ship missiles.
Earlier this year, an approximately $7-billion upgrade was approved by the government for 84 Su-30MKIs, including new avionics and radars in the initial phase, followed by flight control systems.
The upgrades will be carried out by HAL over the next 15 years with the help of Indian industry.
Meanwhile, the government signed a 260-billion rupee ($3.1 billion) deal with HAL in September for the supply of 240 AL-31FP engines for the aircraft.
Unlike the upgrade approval, the engine deal is more of a sustainment effort to keep the aircraft flying over the next few decades.
