List of active Indian military aircraft

The following list of active Indian military aircraft is a list of military aircraft currently in service with the Indian Armed Forces. For a list of historical aircraft used by the Indian Military, see list of historical aircraft of the Indian Air Force.

Indian Air Force

Type	Origin	Class	Role	Version	Number[1]	Notes
Sukhoi Su-30MKI	Russia India	Jet	Multirole air superiority fighter	Su-30MKI	242[2]	A total of 272 on order, with a possible order of 40 more.[3] All aircraft to be upgraded to Super Sukhoi standards.which could be fitted with the supercruise brahmos missiles
HAL Tejas	India	Jet	Multirole fighter	Mk.1 Trainer	1	1 aircraft delivered with 19 more on order for Mk.1 with IOC-2 standard. First aircraft entered service on 17 January 2015. FOC received in 2016. Mk.1A is in design stage with plans to finalize design by 2017 and production by 2019. Total planned numbers are 20 Mk.1 and 100 Mk.1A in five squadrons.[4] In June 2016 IAF will make its first squadron complete with 4 tejas LCA mk1 .
Mikoyan MiG-29	USSR	Jet	Fighter	MiG-29 (9.12B) MiG-29UPG	59[1] 10[5]	Air superiority fighter. Being upgraded to MiG-29UPG standard, the first six were upgraded in Russia. Remaining aircraft to be upgraded by HAL.[6]
Dassault Mirage 2000	France	Jet	Multirole fighter	M2000H M2000TH M2000I/TI	39[1] 9[1] 2[7]	Being upgraded.
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21	USSR India	Jet	Fighter	MiG21Bison MiG21MF	245[1]	MiG-21MF ("Type 88") and one squadron of upgraded MiG-21 Bisons to be retired in 2017.[8][9] Remaining 132 aircraft to be phased out by 2022 or 2025.[10][11] To be replaced by the HAL Tejas.
SEPECAT Jaguar	UK India	Jet	Attack	M/S T	115[1] 30[1][12]	Service-life upgrades to be completed by 2020.[10] Also operated in a naval strike role.[13]
MiG-27 Bahadur	USSR	Jet	Attack	MiG-27ML	120[1]	All non-upgraded aircraft to be retired by March 2016, with remaining aircraft to be retired by 2018. To be replaced by HAL Tejas.[10][14]
C-17 Globemaster	USA	Jet	Strategic transport	C-17	10[1]	Total 10 ordered with option for 6 more. Ordered only 3 later with delays in clearing funds for further 3. When funds were cleared, Boeing had only 1 more on its production line.[15]
Ilyushin Il-76 Candid	USSR	Jet	Strategic transport	Il-76MD	17[1]
C-130J Super Hercules	USA	Propeller	Tactical transport	C-130J-30SH	5[1]	7 more on order.[1] This is inclusive of 1 additional aircraft ordered in August 2014 to replace the loss of a crashed C-130J.[16]
Hawker Siddeley HS 748	UK India	Propeller	Tactical transport	HS 748-100	59[1]	To be replaced with 56 EADS CASA C-295 aircraft.[17]
Antonov An-32 Cline	USSR	Propeller	Tactical transport	An-32 An-32RE	60[1] 40[18]	All to be upgraded to An-32RE standard by 2016 (60 to be upgraded locally and 40 upgraded in Ukraine). To be eventually replaced by UAC/HAL Il-214.[19]
Dornier Do 228	Germany India	Propeller	Utility transport	Do 228-201	40[1]	14 more ordered in February 2015.[20]
Boeing 737	USA	Jet	VIP transport	737-200 ADV 737-700	1 3	[21]
Embraer 135,145	Brazil	Jet	VIP transport	ERJ 135 145	4 4
Ilyushin Il-78 MKI	Russia[Note 1]	Jet	Aerial refueling	IL-78MKI	7[1]
Beriev A-50 Phalcon	Russia[Note 2]	Jet	AEW&C	A-50E/I	3[1]	2 more on order.[1]
Embraer ERJ-145 AEWCS	Brazil[Note 3]	Jet	AEW&C		2	2 currently undergoing testing by DRDO and IAF. 1 more to be delivered.[22]
Gulfstream III	USA	Jet	Electronic warfare	IV SRA-4	3[1]	Operated by the R&AW, India's external intelligence agency.
Bombardier 5000	Canada[Note 4]	Jet	Reconnaissance	Global 5000	2[23]	Operated by the R&AW, India's external intelligence agency.
IAI Astra	Israel	Jet	Reconnaissance	G100 Astra	2[1]
BAE Hawk	UK India	Jet	Trainer	Hawk 132	90[24][25]	15 more to be delivered.[24] Deliveries expected to be complete by the end of 2016.[26]
HAL HJT-16 Kiran	India	Jet	Trainer	HJT-16 HJT-16II	81[1]	To be phased out by 2017 and eventually be replaced by BAE Hawk (20 Hawks currently on order).[24][27]
Pilatus PC-7	Switzerland	Propeller	Trainer	Mk II	75	All aircraft delivered by November 2015.[28] A further 106 may be ordered.[29]
Mil Mi-35 Hind-E	USSR	Helicopter	Attack	Mi-35	20[1]	Few donated to Afghanistan Armed Forces. To be eventually replaced by Boeing AH-64E Apache.[30]
HAL Rudra	India	Helicopter	Attack	ALH-WSI	7	Total of 38 on order.
HAL Light Combat Helicopter	India	Helicopter	Attack	LCH	3	65 on order.[1] 3 prototypes delivered.[31]
Mil Mi-26 Halo	USSR	Helicopter	Transport	Mi-26	3[1]	Will be complemented by Boeing CH-47 Chinook of which 15 are ordered.
Mil Mi-8 Mi-17	USSR	Helicopter	Transport	Mi-8 Mi-17 Mi-17V5	400+[32]	Additional 48 Mi-17V5s may be ordered.[33]
HAL Dhruv	India	Helicopter	Utility	Dhruv	46[1]	65 more on order.[1]
HAL Cheetah	India	Helicopter	Utility	Cheetal	14[1]
HAL Chetak	India	Helicopter	Utility	SA316B SA319	74[1]

Indian Naval Air Arm

Type	Origin	Class	Role	Version	Number[1]	Notes
Mikoyan MiG-29K	Russia	Jet	Multirole fighter	MiG-29K MiG-29KUB	39[34]	6 more on order.[34]
Boeing P-8 Poseidon	USA	Jet	Patrol	P-8I Neptune	8[1]	4 more to be delivered.[1] Possibly up to 12 more to be ordered.[1]
Tupolev Tu-142	USSR	Propeller	Patrol	Tu-142M	8[1]	Being modernised in Russia.[35]
Ilyushin Il-38	USSR	Propeller	Patrol	Il-38SD	5[1]	All five Sea Dragon variants are being overhauled, and will include a further minor upgrade.[36]
Dornier Do 228	Germany India	Propeller	Utility	Do 228-101 Do 228-201	25[1]
Britten-Norman Islander	UK	Propeller	Utility	BN-2	8[1]
BAE Hawk	UK	Jet	Trainer	Hawk 132	17[24]	6 more to be delivered.[24]
HAL HJT-16 Kiran	India	Jet	Trainer		20[1]	To be replaced by the new HAL HJT-36 Sitara.
Kamov Ka-31 Helix-B	Russia	Helicopter	Airborne early warning		14[1]
Kamov Ka-28 (Helix-A)	Russia	Helicopter	Anti-submarine warfare	Ka-27PL (Helix-A)	14[1]
Westland Sea King	UK	Helicopter	Anti-submarine warfare Transport	Mk42B Mk42C	22[1] 5[1]
Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King	USA	Helicopter	Transport	UH-3H	6[1]
HAL Dhruv	India	Helicopter	Utility		8[1]	16 more on order.[1]
HAL Chetak	India	Helicopter	Utility	SA316B SA319	30[1]

Army Aviation Corps

Type	Origin	Class	Role	Version	Number[1]	Notes
HAL Rudra	India	Helicopter	Attack	ALH-WSI	20	40 more on order.[37]
HAL Light Combat Helicopter	India	Helicopter	Attack	LCH	Prototypes are built .	114 on order.[1]
HAL Dhruv	India	Helicopter	Utility		73[1]	Total of 151 on order.[1]
HAL Cheetah, Cheetal & Lancer	India	Helicopter	Utility Utility Counter-insurgency	Cheetah Cheetal Lancer	23[1] 4[1] 12
HAL Chetak & Chetan	India	Helicopter	Utility	Chetak	4[1]	Being withdrawn from service and replaced by HAL Dhruv.

Indian Coast Guard

Type	Origin	Class	Role	Version	Number	Notes
Dornier Do 228	India Germany	Propeller	Patrol	Do 228-101	38
HAL Dhruv	India	Helicopter	Utility		4[38]	16 more ordered in July 2014.[38]
HAL Chetak	India	Helicopter	Utility	Chetak	18

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Note: The Indian Armed Forces operate a number of Unmanned aerial vehicles split between the three service branches.

Type	Origin	Class	Role	Version	Number	Notes
IAI Harpy	Israel	UAV	Attack		5+	A small UCAV that homes into enemy radar emissions - destroying both itself and the enemy radar. In service with Indian Air Force.
IAI Harop	Israel	UAV	Attack		10	A small UCAV that homes into enemy radar emissions - destroying both itself and the enemy radar. In service with Indian Air Force.
IAI Heron	Israel	UAV		Heron I Heron II	50+	In service with Indian Air Force and Indian Navy. 15 more ordered in December 2013.
IAI Searcher	Israel	UAV		Searcher II Searcher I	100+	In service with the Indian Army.
DRDO Nishant	India	UAV			12+	In service with the Indian Army.
DRDO Lakshya	India	UAV	Aerial target		39	A small target drone in service with the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy.[39]

See also

• List of historical aircraft of the Indian Air Force
• List of Indian naval aircraft
• Currently active military equipment by country
• Military of India
• Indian Air Force
• Indian Naval Air Arm
• Future of the Indian Air Force
• Border Security Force - who operate their own fleet of aircraft for security purposes

Notes

1. Assembled in Uzbekistan, with Israeli designed fuel-transfer system.
2. With Israeli EL/W-2090 radar system.
3. With Indian radar system.
4. Fitted with Israeli radars.

References

1. "World Air Forces 2015" (PDF). Flightglobal Insight. 2015. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
2. "Indian Air Force scrambling to outgun China, Pakistan in the air". Indian Air Force scrambling to outgun China, Pakistan in the air. idrw. Archived from the original on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015. It has purchased a total of 2272 Su-30MKI fighter from Russia. Among them, 2220 have been delivered.
3. "Russia Expects 40 More Sukhoi-30MKI Sales To India". Defense World. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
4. "India To Replace MiG Fleet With 106 Upgraded Tejas Jets". DefenseWorld. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
5. "Russian overhauled Mig-29s take to the air with Indian air force". Russia & India Report. rbth. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
6. "The first modernized in India Mig-29UPG took to the skies". defencenews.in. 14 March 2014.
7. Hoyle, Craig (25 March 2015), "Pictures: India accepts first upgraded Mirage 2000s", Flightglobal
8. Simha, Rakesh Krishnan (2014-06-27). "Sukhoi-30MKI is India’s fallback fighter". Russia & India Report. Retrieved 2014-07-17.
9. Sagar, Pradip R. (2016-01-17). "Money Ballast Keeps Rafales on Runway". The New Indian Express: The Sunday Standard. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
10. "India's air force to buy additional su 30mki fighters".
11. "IAF Transformation: Happening but delay on MMRCA is worrying". India Strategic. October 2013. Retrieved 17 July 2014.
12. "Jaguar Fighter Aircraft Crashes Near Allahabad, Pilots Eject Safely". NDTV. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
13. Jane's Fighting Ships 2004-05. p. 407 (of part 1).
14. Mathrani, Mukesh (27 January 2015). "IAF's MiG-27 aircraft crashes in Rajasthan, pilot safe". Retrieved 27 January 2015.
15. "IAF clears proposal to buy three C 17; Boeing says only one plane left to sell".
16. "Indian Air Force to replace crashed C-130J medium-lift aircraft". August 19, 2014.
17. "Airbus Wins $1.9 Billion Indian Military Cargo Plane Order". Bloomberg business. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
18. Aroor, Shiv. "Ukraine Completes India's An-32 Upgrade, Shoots Down 'Unreliability' Charge". LiveFist. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
19. "India Refurbishing its AN-32 Transport Fleet". Defense Industry Daily. 6 April 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
20. "Indian Air Force to acquire 14 Dornier planes from HAL". The Economic Times. 5 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
21. "Boeing 737". Bharat Rakshak. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
22. "Second Brazilian plane with Indian AEW&C System flown". The Hindu. 5 April 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
23. Gupta, Shishir (3 May 2012). "After 20 years, R&AW upgrades to super spy jets". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
24. "HAL eyes export potential of light attack Hawk". Flightglobal. 28 May 2015. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
25. "IAF Hawk jet trainer aircraft crashes in Jharkhand". Economic times. India Times. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
26. "Hawk Jet Trainers". PIB, Govt of India. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
27. "Pilatus PC-7 gives boost to IAF Academy". The Hindu. 13 December 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
28. "IAF gets its 75th Pilatus training aircraft PC-7 MkII". The Economic Times. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
29. Ajai Shukla (14 February 2015). "Defence ministry official questions whether Pilatus was cheapest trainer". Business Standard. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
30. "India Offers to Buy More US Helicopters to Lower Costs". Voice of America. 7 August 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
31. "HAL’s third LCH prototype conducts maiden flight". Flightglobal. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
32. Maass, Ryan. "Russian Helicopters completes Mi-17V-5 deliveries to India". United Press International. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
33. Manu Pubby (20 July 2015). "IAF moves proposal to acquire 48 Mi 17 choppers from Russia to strengthen transport fleet". The Economic Times. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
34. "INS Hansa getting crowded, Navy starts moving Mig-29Ks". IDRW (29 June 2015). Retrieved 29 June 2015.
35. "Indian navy took delivery of another Tu-142ME antisubmarine aircraft". Russian Aviation. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
36. "Russia to repair Indian anti-submarine aircraft". ITAR-TASS. 15 August 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
37. "Army gets attack helicopters as India eyes China threat". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2012-12-13.
38. "Indian Navy And Coast Guard To Get 32 Dhruv Helicopters". Defense World. 24 July 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
39. "Hindustan Aeronautics Limited delivers 'Lakshya-1' aircraft to Bharat Dynamics Limited". Indian Express. 27 July 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2013.

External links

• The Official Home Page of Indian Air Force.