India tries to sell its Tejas fighters to Milei’s Argentina
The young government of President Javier Milei is still examining the options for choosing the fighter jet that the Argentine Air Force will be equipped with, in a fight that now sees the US offer in the field, with the used F 16s that would have displaced the Sino-Pakistani JF-17 , but there is a competitor that is coming forward with the new government: India and its multi-role fighter Tejas .
On February 6, India's ambassador to Argentina and Uruguay, Dinesh Bhatia, met with Air Force Brigadier Fernando Luis Mengo, the service's chief of staff, to discuss the proposal "for acquisition by Argentina of Tejas fighter jets and helicopters manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited,” according to a statement from the Indian embassy in Buenos Aires. The Tejas, manufactured in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), is yet to get an export customer.
India is at a very geopolitical disadvantage in the Argentine competition, as it faces both the United States and China. Washington hopes that Buenos Aires will choose used F-16s, which will be supplied by the Royal Danish Air Force as used assets. Beijing offers the Chengdu/PAC JF-17 Thunder, co-produced by China and Pakistan. HAL would now enter the field with an unspecified offer, but which the Argentine media have speculated could reach up to 18 Tejas in case of selection.
The Tejas is a light fighter/trainer aircraft that was built with the aim of providing an alternative to higher cost and more sophisticated fighters. Its evolution has been quite long, but it uses the same engine as the F-18 and in the latest versions it also appears quite advanced. Its structure is similar to the Mirage 2000 or, in function, to the Saab Gripen.
While it is unclear where Tejas stands on the Air Force's list of potential suppliers, several meetings have been held in recent years. Last July, then Argentine Defense Minister Jorge Taiana visited New Delhi to sign a cooperation agreement with HAL to modernize the Argentine army's helicopter fleet. In particular, Buenos Aires is interested in the joint production of HAL's Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) and Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). During the visit, Taiana would visit the HAL plants where Tejas is also produced. Likewise, then-Commander of the Air Force, Brig. Gen. Xavier Julián Isaac, visited HAL's facilities during a tour of India in March 2022.
Additionally, last June a delegation from HAL traveled to Buenos Aires to “evaluate the offer of Tejas fighter aircraft” with the service's high command, including Isaac.
Argentina decommissioned its fleet of Dassault Mirage jets in 2015 and has been searching for a replacement ever since. The presidency of Alberto Fernández (2019-2023) ended without any contracts for the purchase of primary combat aircraft or for the co-production of HAL helicopters, and there are open questions about what comes next: Milei, who is inaugurated last December, declared that “there is no money” for sales of large military acquisitions. However, the recent meeting between Bhatia and a senior Air Force officer shows that New Delhi has not given up hope of wooing Buenos Aires.
At least one Air Force modernization effort continues to move forward: On Feb. 5, the service received the first of two Embraer ERJ 140 LR transport aircraft. The platform, called “Vuelo del Pampero” (tail number T-95), and its future twin “Paloma Gaucha” (T-96) will be assigned to the II Squadron of the 1 Air Transport Group (Grupo 1 de Transporte Aéreo) .
So far, India's footprint in Latin America's defense market is virtually non-existent. In 2008, Ecuador purchased seven HAL Dhruv utility helicopters, four of which crashed (there were fatalities in one accident). The remaining three helicopters were grounded in 2015. Meanwhile, after a visit to India in January 2023, Guyanese President Irfaan Ali announced plans to purchase one or two HAL Dornier 228s for general use. However, a year later, no contract has been announced.
The only successful sale India has had in Latin America was to Chile. Notably, the Chilean Navy received the Anchor Handling, Towing, Supply, and Standby Vessel (AHTSSV) Janequeo (ATF) in 2021 -65) . The AHTSSV, built by the Indian shipyard Larsen & Toubro Shipbuilding, participates in Chile's Antarctic campaign.
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The article India tries to sell its Tejas fighters to Milei's Argentina comes from Economic Scenarios .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/lindia-cerca-di-vendere-allargentina-di-milei-i-propri-caccia-tejas/ on Sun, 18 Feb 2024 14:41:48 +0000.