The admission by Union Defence Minister George Fernandes that it would take another two to three years before the Advanced Jet Trainer could be introduced in the Indian Air Force is a sad commentary on our ability to procure equipment for our defence forces. It is no secret that the requirement for the AJT is at least a decade old and the Air Force, particularly the young pilots, have paid a heavy price for the delay in induction. The high rate of accidents involving Mig-21 aircraft may not be totally attributed to the absence of an advanced jet trainer, but its absence has certainly played a sizeable role in it. The induction of pilots to fly jets after having been trained on slow-moving trainers has certainly been one of the causes identified by Air Force instructors for the high rate of accidents which compares unfavourably not only with advanced countries, but also with our Asian neighbours.

The reasons given for the delay also makes no sense. According to the Defence Minister, the allegation by the Americans that British Aerospace, the makers of Hawks, had paid bribes was responsible for the delay. This argument makes no sense as irrespective of the choice made including Hawks it will require at least two to three years before the planes are delivered as no planes are available off-the-shelf and the assembly lines making them have been shut down a long time ago. It is only after the Indian order is received that action will be initiated to manufacture these planes. As such, the delay is on account of the fact that India has not been able to make up its mind, and any further delay will only complicate matters.

It is true that because of the long delay in decision making, some options have come up. They include new versions of Migs offered in trainer version by the Russians, a plane produced in Czechoslovakia in collaboration with the Americans and an Italian trainer. Even the U. S. manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, has thrown its hat in the ring by offering a trainer being specially designed by them for the Indonesian Air Force. All these planes need to be evaluated. As for the time factor, irrespective of the choice made, a period of two to three years is required. So the Defence Minister should not try to hide his inability to push a decision by blaming the Americans for making allegations against the British.

Yet another factor that needs to be noted is that irrespective of the various deals made, India has been a poor bargainer and has not always been able to get the best equipment available. We have often shied away from buying the best on the plea of cost considerations. It is time that instead of looking at the initial cost only, we should also look at the total cost over a period of time that the equipment will be in use. The mistake of buying cheap planes which in the long run proved to be white elephants because they were guzzlers in terms of fuel and required frequent change of spares should be avoided. Yet another argument given for sourcing defence equipment from certain countries was shortage of hard currency and the advantages of rupee trade. All these arguments make no sense in present times, as India has an abundance of hard currency.

India has started shopping in different world capitals. In this context, the entry of Israel needs special notice, as in a very short period it has become a major supplier to the Indian defence forces. The list is continuing to grow. Even countries like the United States of America which had kept out of the Indian market in the past because of political considerations have started offering state-of-the-art weapon systems.

Under the circumstances, if the Defence Ministry feels that the question of acquiring Advanced Jet Trainers needs to be reopened, it should be done without any hesitation. We need not look for excuses like the attempts by the British to bribe Defence Ministry officials as alleged by the Americans. The time factor as far as getting these planes is concerned will change only marginally irrespective of the choice made.

It is true that the Air Force is stretched by a big margin at present as the development of Light Combat Aircraft being made by HAL has been delayed by years. Even now, no firm dates can be given as a prototype has flown with an American engine made by General Electric. The locally developed Kaveri power plant is yet to be fully tested and flown. Under the circumstances, the choice of AJT is crucial. The trainer aircraft in modern times can also be used for fighting, so the choice should be carefully looked into. The Defence Minister may like to blame Tehelka for all his problems, but the fact remains that no major purchase by defence forces has been free of controversy and to bring about transparency we need a better system of control.