United States' GE Aerospace to establish F404-IN20 engine depot for Indian Air Force

Key facts

• GE Aerospace announced a contract with the Indian Air Force (IAF) to set up an in-country depot for F404-IN20 engines that power the IAF’s Light Combat Aircraft Tejas fleet.
• The depot will be owned, operated and maintained by the IAF, while GE Aerospace will supply technical inputs, training, support staff, spares and specialised equipment.
• The facility is expected to remove dependence on overseas repair centres and significantly improve engine turnaround times.
• The collaboration marks the next step in a four-decade-long partnership between GE Aerospace and the IAF.
• Rita Flaherty, Vice President of Sales and Business Development for Defence and Systems at GE Aerospace, said the company is committed to supporting India’s armed forces.
• GE Aerospace also provides engines for the Indian Navy’s P-8I maritime patrol aircraft, MH-60R helicopters, the IAF’s AH-64 Apache helicopters and LM2500 marine gas turbines for the INS Vikrant aircraft carrier and P-17 Shivalik-class frigates.
• Over the past ten years, GE Aerospace’s skilling initiatives have trained more than 5,000 people with core manufacturing skills at its Pune factory.
• The company’s local two-year Edison Engineering Development Program has graduated 150 engineers.
• In September 2025, the GE Aerospace Foundation, in partnership with United Way, launched the Next Engineers programme in Bengaluru to support 4,000 engineering aspirants.
• GE Aerospace has approximately 1,400 engines in service with major Indian airlines and a Pune manufacturing facility with 13 local Indian partners.
• The India Technology Centre in Bengaluru, operating for 25 years, develops aviation technologies for both commercial and military applications.
• GE Aerospace’s global installed base comprises about 50,000 commercial and 30,000 military aircraft engines and employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide.