&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Why India still can’t build its own jet engine – even after 40 years")
In 1986, India started the Kaveri engine projectwith a big dream: to make its own powerful jet engine and free its air force from dependence on foreign suppliers. But almost four decades later, the dream is still out of reach. The project has already cost more than six times the original budget, yet India’s Tejas fighter jets continue to fly with American engines.
So, what went wrong? The Kaveri engine has struggled from the beginning. It never managed to produce enough thrust, and has repeatedly faced problems like being too heavy, overheating, and lacking durability. Even after decades of upgrades, it cannot match engines designed abroad as far back as the 1970s. That is why the Tejas is forced to use proven American engines — and when supplies are delayed, Tejas production slows down as well.
Some of the challenges are technical. India’s defense industry has lagged in metallurgy, advanced materials, and precision manufacturing— the building blocks of every jet engine. Without mastering these basics, it has been stuck at the same level for years. Another big reason is poor program management. Experts often say that the project was never matched with India’s real industrial capability. At the same time, the developers resisted genuine partnership — whether with foreign firms, Indian private companies, or even universities.
Interestingly, the often-cited excuse that “nobody shares engine technology” no longer holds true. India is already getting nearly 80% technology transfer with the American F414 engine and has also teamed up with French company Safran for a new fifth‑generation engine. This shows that cooperation ispossible when projects are well organized.
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Even now, the Kaveri has only been cleared for limited test flights. A weaker version is being planned for India’s future stealth drone, the Ghatak. Since drones need less powerful engines than fighter jets, this might be achievable. But critics worry that splitting resources between fighters and drones will delay progress even further.
Some Indian experts argue that the Kaveri project should not be called a failure, since it created a base of knowledge for future projects. But after nearly 40 years without a usable result, the real lesson is not just about engineering. It’s about how not to run a national defence program— a point widely noted by defense express media. The road to a true Indian jet engine remains long, and nobody can say how many more years it will take.
