For weeks, India–US relations seemed caught in a tailspin, thanks to President Donald Trump’s trademark outbursts. First came the reckless tariff war, then the 50 per cent duty slapped on Indian goods, and finally the unpresidential flourish—his staff’s “unacceptable language” hurled at New Delhi. Many feared the bonkers theatrics from Washington would derail years of painstakingly built defence cooperation. Yet, amid the noise, action has spoken louder than tweets. The arrival of the latest General Electric (GE) F404-IN20 engine for India’s TEJAS Mk-1A fighter jet is proof that the world’s two largest democracies know how to pull back from the brink. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has now received the third of 12 engines to be delivered by early 2026 under a revised accelerated schedule. After nearly two years of delay—largely due to global supply chain hiccups and a bottleneck in South Korean components—deliveries are finally moving at the promised pace of two engines a month. A minor one-month slippage coincided with Trump’s tariff tantrum, but the US kept its defence commitments intact. In other words, bluster aside, America has quietly done what matters most: keep India’s fighter jet production on track. This consistency could not come at a more critical time. The Indian Air Force is desperate to retire its ageing MiG-21 fleet, and the TEJAS Mk-1A has become the backbone of its modernization drive. With 83 aircraft already ordered and another 97 under consideration, India may eventually field 180 homegrown fighters. HAL has set itself an ambitious target of producing 30 TEJAS annually by 2026–27. Every GE engine delivered on time is therefore not just a piece of hardware—it is a lifeline for India’s air power and a signal of reliability in bilateral ties.
The $716 million contract signed in 2021 for 99 engines was always about more than procurement. It was about trust. Washington could have easily used supply delays as a pressure tactic during Trump’s trade skirmishes. Instead, the US allowed defence collaboration to rise above transactional spats. For all of Trump’s erratic impulses, this steady flow of engines is a reminder that beneath the surface drama, American institutions still understand the stakes of a strategic partnership with India. And the story does not end with deliveries. Talks are already underway for deeper cooperation, including technology transfers and local manufacturing of advanced engines for future platforms like the TEJAS Mk-2 and the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). If realised, this would transform the India–US defence relationship from mere buyer-seller transactions into genuine co-development. That’s a far more powerful deterrent to Chinese adventurism than any Trumpian tariff tirade. Of course, critics of the relationship will keep pointing to Trump’s verbal pyrotechnics as proof that Washington cannot be trusted. But that misses the bigger picture. Defence cooperation thrives because interests converge, not because politicians always play nice. India wants self-reliance in aerospace. The US wants a strong partner in Asia. Every time a TEJAS takes off with an American engine, it embodies that convergence—despite, not because of, Trump’s theatrics. So yes, Trump may still go off-script tomorrow, threatening tariffs or tossing insults. That is his political style: bluster first, correction later. But the steady hum of a GE engine powering India’s indigenous jet is the real soundtrack of this relationship. It tells us that even when the White House goes bonkers, the machinery of cooperation keeps running smoothly. The roar of the TEJAS engine on the runway is more than just sound—it is the thrum of a partnership recalibrated, of trust renewed, and of a future where actions matter more than tantrums.
