This article provides a list of active Indian military aircraft currently in service with the Indian Armed Forces, as well as aircraft on order. For a list of historical military aircraft used by the Indian military, see list of historical aircraft of the Indian Air Force.
Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | In service | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Helicopters | |||||
Boeing AH-64 | United States | attack | AH-64E(I) | 6 on order [45] | |
HAL Prachand | India | attack | 90 on order [29] | ||
HAL Rudra | India | attack | 75 [46] [47] | ||
HAL Dhruv | India | utility | 76 [47] [48] | 19 more on order [49] [50] | |
Alouette III | France/India | liaison / utility | Chetak | 190 [51] [52] - 200 [53] | license-built by HAL |
SA 315B Lama | France/India | liaison / utility | Cheetah | ||
UAV | |||||
Drishti-10 | Israel/India | Reconnaissance | 2 on order [54] | ||
IAI Heron | Israel | Surveillance | Heron 1 | [55] | |
IAI Heron TP | Israel | Surveillance | 4 [56] | Deployed in Ladakh and Northeast. | |
IAI Heron Mk 2 | Israel | Surveillance | Mk 2 | 6 on order [57] | |
IAI Searcher [58] | Israel | Reconnaissance | Mk-II | <100 [59] | |
MQ-9 Reaper | United States | Surveillance/ Combat | SkyGuardian | 8 on order | [40] |
Ideaforge Switch [60] [61] | India | Surveillance | 1.0 | undisclosed quantities on order [60] | |
NewSpace NIMBUS | India | Swarm drones | Mk-III | 75 | Part of autonomous surveillance and armed drone swarm (A-SADS) [62] [63] |
NewSpace BELUGA | India | Swarm drones | 25 | ||
Raphe MPhibr MR-20 [64] | India | Cargo | 48 [64] |
Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | In service | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Maritime patrol | |||||
Dornier Do 228 | Germany | reconnaissance | 101/201 [27] | 36 [80] | 2 on order [81] |
Helicopters | |||||
HAL Dhruv | India | utility | Mk. I / Mk. III | 4 / 16 [82] [83] [84] | 9 Mk.III on order [85] 6 more planned [86] |
HAL Chetak | France/India | utility | 17 [87] |
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is an Indian public sector aerospace and defence company, headquartered in Bengaluru (Bangalore). Established on 23 December 1940, HAL is one of the oldest and largest aerospace and defence manufacturers in the world. HAL began aircraft manufacturing as early as 1942 with licensed production of Harlow PC-5, Curtiss P-36 Hawk and Vultee A-31 Vengeance for the Indian Air Force. HAL currently has 11 dedicated Research and development (R&D) centres and 21 manufacturing divisions under 4 production units spread across India. HAL is managed by a board of directors appointed by the President of India through the Ministry of Defence, Government of India. In 2024, the company was given Maharatna status. HAL is currently involved in the designing and manufacturing of fighter jets, helicopters, jet engine and marine gas turbine engine, avionics, hardware development, spares supply, overhauling and upgrading of Indian military aircraft.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 October 1932 as an auxiliary air force of the British Empire which honoured India's aviation service during World War II with the prefix Royal. After India gained independence from United Kingdom in 1947, the name Royal Indian Air Force was kept and served in the name of the Dominion of India. With the transition to a republic in 1950, the prefix Royal was removed.
The HAL Tejas is an Indian single-engine, delta wing, multirole combat aircraft designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Navy. Tejas made its first flight in 2001 and entered into service with the IAF in 2015. In 2003, the aircraft was officially named 'Tejas'. Currently Tejas is the smallest and lightest in its class of supersonic combat aircraft.
The IAI Heron (Machatz-1) is a medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed by the Malat (UAV) division of Israel Aerospace Industries. It is capable of Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) operations of up to 52 hours' duration at up to 10.5 km (35,000 ft). It has demonstrated 52 hours of continuous flight, but the effective operational maximal flight duration is less, according to payload and flight profile. An advanced version, the Heron TP, is also known as the IAI Eitan.
Astra is an Indian family of all weather beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation. Different missiles of this family are capable of engaging targets at varying distances of 500 m (0.31 mi) up to 340 km (210 mi). Astra Mk-1 has been integrated with Indian Air Force's Sukhoi Su-30MKI and will be integrated with Dassault Mirage 2000, HAL Tejas and Mikoyan MiG-29 in the future. Limited series production of Astra Mk-1 missiles began in 2017.
The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) is an Indian single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather fifth-generation stealth, multirole combat aircraft being developed for the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy. The Mark-1 variant of the aircraft will be a fifth generation fighter while the Mark-2 variant will have sixth-generation technologies. The aircraft is designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) - an aircraft design agency under MoD. A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) consisting of ADA, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and a private company is being formed for the development and production of AMCA. In March 2024, the project received approval from India's Cabinet Committee on Security for the prototype development and mass production expected to begin by 2035.
The Indian Naval Air Arm is the aviation branch and a fighting arm of the Indian Navy which is tasked to provide an aircraft carrier-based strike capability, fleet air defence, maritime reconnaissance, and anti-submarine warfare.
The HAL Prachand is an Indian multi-role light attack helicopter designed and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) under Project Light Combat Helicopter (LCH). It has been ordered by the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Army's Aviation Corps (AAC). On 3 October 2022, the LCH was formally inducted into the IAF and was officially named "Prachand".
The HAL Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), along with its derivative, Light Observation Helicopter (LOH), was designed and developed by the Rotary Wing Research and Design Center (RWR&DC), one of the R&D sections of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), for civilian and military applications. These are intended to replace license-built versions of Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama (designated Cheetah) and Aérospatiale Alouette III (designated Chetak) in service with the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.
The IAI Eitan is an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft developed in Israel in the early 21st century by the Malat division of Israel Aerospace Industries. The aircraft is a newer version of the IAI Heron. Along with intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTR), Israeli IAI Eitan also capable of holding armed roles. There are conflicting reports on whether the exported Eitan's are unarmed or armed.
The Army Aviation Corps (AAC) is the youngest arm of the Indian Army, being formally designated on 1 November 1986. The Army Aviation Corps units are designated as Squadrons. Each squadron generally consists of two Flights. Reconnaissance (Recce) and Observation flights might be part of squadrons or operate independently. The latter do not have a parent squadron and are designated by an (I) in their name.
The Elbit Systems Hermes 900 Kochav ("Star") is an Israeli medium-size, multi-payload, medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for tactical missions. It is a successor to the Hermes 450 series of drones, one of the most widely used military drones in the world.
The Indian Air Force has been undergoing a modernization program to replace and upgrade outdated equipment since the late 1990s to meet modern standards. For that reason, it has started procuring and developing aircraft, weapons, associated technologies, and infrastructures. Some of these programs date back to the late 1980s. The primary focus of current modernization and upgrades is to replace aircraft purchased from the Soviet Union that currently form the backbone of the air force.
INS Dega, is a naval air station of the Indian Navy. It is located in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on the east coast of India.
HAL RUAV-200 is an unmanned rotorcraft project being developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for the Indian Army and the Indian Navy.
The Indian Navy has been focusing on developing indigenous platforms, systems, sensors and weapons as part of the nation's modernisation and expansion of its maritime forces. As of November 2023, the Indian Navy had 67 vessels of various types under construction including destroyers, frigates, corvettes, conventional-powered and nuclear-powered submarines and various other ships. It plans to build up to a total of 200 vessels and 500 aircraft by 2050. According to the Chief of the Naval Staff's statement in December 2020, India has transformed from a buyer's navy to a builder's navy.
The Tactical Airborne Platform for Aerial Surveillance Beyond Horizon-201 or TAPAS BH-201(Sanskrit: तपस्; lit. Heat) is a medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) being developed in India by Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) on the lines of General Atomics MQ-1 Predator.
The HAL Tejas Mark 2, or Medium Weight Fighter (MWF), is an Indian single-engine, canard delta wing, multirole combat aircraft designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) in collaboration with Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF). It is a further development of the HAL Tejas, with an elongated airframe, close coupled canards, new sensors, and a more powerful engine. The roll-out of the first prototype is expected by 2025, first flight within 2026 and mass production by 2029.
Exercise Tarang Shakti is a biennial multinational air combat exercise hosted by the Indian Air Force. The first edition of the exercise, previously planned in 2023, was held in August and September of 2024. The multinational air exercise is held in two phases. In each phase will 70 - 80 aircraft were deployed, with a total of 150 aircraft estimated to have taken part in the exercise. In the first edition, 11 countries are participating with military assets including Australia, France, Germany, Greece, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In addition, 18 other countries participated as observers. The Tarang Shakti 2024 was the first and largest international air exercise hosted by India.
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