Indian Navy Rejects Home-made Fighter Jets

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative has received a big blow, as the Indian Navy refused to use home-made war planes.

The Navy recently asked the Modi government to export fighter jets from foreign countries, saying that home-made jets are too heavy to use. According to sources close to the Navy, they also invited manufacturers to pitch for 57 fighter jets for Indian aircraft carriers. As expected, the move irked the government, which had hoped that the multi-billion dollar order would go to the state-run producers of 'Tejas' - a combat aircraft 33 years in the making.

A senior Navy commander told the press over the weekend that Indian, South Korean, Taiwanese and other Asian buyers had decided to develop indigenous fighter jets in 2017 because of anxieties that the US might be less engaged in the region under President Donald Trump. However, they...