UK training over, first Hawk to be here by 2007

A contingent of 20 IAF pilots is currently under training in the UK on the Hawk, and about 50 more will follow.

‘‘It is 20 years and the aircraft has the same qualities as we thought,’’ said Tyagi, after the 20-minute spin today. ‘‘All these years we have been flying without the Hawks. This will definitely improve the training of the pilots.’’

In what has been the longest drawn out Defence purchase negotiation, the Indian government finally settled last March for a deal where 22 Hawks will be flown in from BAe’s manufacturing facility in East Yorkshire (seven are already on the production line), and 44 will be made by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bangalore.

‘‘The first Hawk will be flown by the IAF around 2006-end and is expected to be accepted by India in early 2007,’’ said BAe Systems senior military advisor, Air Chief Marshal Sir John Day. On the government’s initial concerns about uninterrupted supply of spares and maintenance, BAe officials said that the government was content with the details of the agreement.