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The Print
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Print
India's AMCA is a chance to break HAL's monopoly and finally build an aerospace ecosystem
Meanwhile, China has rapidly scaled its indigenous aerospace capabilities by nurturing multiple parallel programmes, from the J-10 and J-16 to the fifth-generation J-20 and the carrier-based J-35/FC-31, through a mix of centralised vision and decentralised execution. Even Pakistan, with far fewer resources, has co-developed the JF-17 with China, and is now inducting more advanced variants with indigenous inputs. These examples reflect the strategic dividends of diversified industrial capacity and risk-sharing. At stake is not just another fighter jet, but India's pathway to building a globally competitive, innovation-driven defence aerospace ecosystem. And that journey cannot proceed if HAL remains both gatekeeper and default beneficiary, while the Ministry of Defence (MoD) continues to play the role of a passive monopsonist. India is preparing to launch its most ambitious aerospace programme yet, the fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft. The challenge is no longer just designing the AMCA; it is choosing who should build it. In this context, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Chairman and Managing Director DK Sunil's recent interview with Business Standard offers more than a routine corporate update. It reveals the institutional mindset of India's largest defence Public Sector Undertaking and its resistance to competitive integration. Sunil's central claim that India does not need another fighter jet integrator should not be mistaken for strategic realism. It is, instead, a warning bell. Pakistan is also exploring collaboration with Turkey, whose TF-X (Kaan) fifth-generation fighter is progressing under Turkish Aerospace Industries. While Pakistan's Project Azm remains aspirational, Ankara has emerged as a co-development partner across multiple domains, including UAVs and simulators. Pakistan's outreach signals its intent to pursue a multi-faceted industrial strategy, integrating Chinese platforms with emerging Turkish partnerships. India, by contrast, continues to rely on a single PSU integrator, raising questions about the adaptability and resilience of its aerospace model. Also read: Critics aren't HAL's enemy—hubris is. And it's hurting India's defence readiness Is HAL a prime contractor or an industrial department? Despite its scale, HAL functions more like an industrial arm of the Indian government than a true 'prime-contractor'. Global primes, such as Lockheed Martin, Dassault, or Korea Aerospace Industries, lead from the front: they own design IP, assume technical and financial risk, manage global supply chains, and remain accountable to both domestic and export customers. HAL, by contrast, operates under government protection, executes pre-funded programmes, and relies on design authorities like the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) or foreign OEMs for critical IP. It faces no real competition, has limited export exposure, and avoids performance-linked risk due to its structural insulation. In effect, HAL remains a delivery node within a protected procurement pipeline, not a market-facing, innovation-driven aerospace prime. The Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) programme exposed HAL's limitations. Dassault, selected to supply 126 Rafales, refused to accept HAL as a license producer without control over production quality and timelines. India wanted Dassault to be accountable (akin to a prime) without granting authority, a contradiction that made the deal untenable. The programme collapsed, and India eventually bought 36 flyaway Rafales from France. Even trusted partners hesitate to rely on HAL for complex fighter integration, not due to malice, but due to structural inefficiencies. Also read: IAF Chief's anger at HAL is justified. The cost of inefficiency is borne by pilots The monopoly-monopsony trap: Scale, distortion, strategic risk The HAL chief's claim that India's Tejas Mk1A, Mk2, and AMCA orders over 30 years don't justify a second integrator rests on flawed arithmetic. It reduces the strategic rationale for diversification to a question of volume, ignoring the more profound truth: competition builds resilience, not redundancy. Industrial scale in aerospace isn't just about numbers. It's about throughput, maturity, and cost-efficiency through repeated, distributed production. Global primes succeed when they can amortise costs across hundreds of platforms, whether single-type (like the F-35) or via diversified workshare (as in Airbus or Boeing). India's current model concentrates HAL at the centre while spreading volumes too thin to drive down cost or attract serious private investment in Tier-1 capacity. India's inability to scale successful platforms like the LCA and ALH is a red flag. This failure has led to another distortion: supply-side-driven inductions. Successive governments have nudged the Indian Navy to accept HAL-developed platforms, not because they meet operational benchmarks, but to keep production lines running. Such approaches undercut user-driven capability development and operational imperatives, reinforcing the need for structural reform, not just patriotic procurement. Without committed production scales, indigenous design efforts remain boutique experiments. For foreign OEMs, this lack of scale undermines India's credibility as a license producer or collaborative builder. No serious partner will risk IP or joint development without shared control and credible volume. Also read: India needs foreign parts for Tejas. Defence atmanirbharta can't become a weakness Global benchmarks: How others built aerospace power Even countries with smaller defence budgets than India, like Israel, support multiple aerospace firms (Israel Aerospace Industries, Rafael, Elbit) that thrive on innovation, strategic partnerships, and export orientation. France backs both Dassault and Airbus through modular co-development and shared ecosystems. The United States maintains Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman in deliberate competition, treating capability redundancy as a strategic asset. Europe's Eurofighter Typhoon programme strikes a balance between sovereign control and shared industrial innovation. The Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) further reflect a global trend towards co-development and layered industrial workshare. Even Sweden's Gripen E/F-series fighter aircraft, in collaboration with Brazil, shows that modest domestic demand can still yield world-class platforms when design and cooperation are aligned. On a similar scale to India's, South Korea's KF-21, Turkey's TF-X, and Japan's F-X fighters demonstrate that aerospace ecosystems thrive when private or hybrid integrators are empowered. In each case, capability-building is a priority over monopoly. India's repeated failure to build an aerospace ecosystem India had a chance to break this monopoly model in the 1980s. Then DRDO chief VS Arunachalam proposed a public-private partnership for the LCA, involving Tata Sons and Commodore Arogyaswami Paulraj, as co-lead (now at Stanford and famous for MIMO antenna systems that power our wireless world). However, the system defaulted to state dominance, with ADA as the designer and HAL as the builder. That PPP vision, and a shot at a plural, innovation-driven ecosystem, was quietly laid to rest. Today, continuing to concentrate on integration within HAL is not only inefficient but also undermines our strategic ambitions. Also read: What Operation Parakram taught us—deterrence requires more than just mobilisation or rhetoric A promising opening, but will it survive HAL's resistance? To its credit, the Indian government has shifted gears. In 2023–24, the MoD and ADA invited private firms to compete as AMCA integrators. Tata Advanced Systems, L&T, Adani Defence, and Bharat Forge expressed interest. ADA would retain design authority, while HAL and private firms compete for production, a structure mirroring global best practices. But HAL's reaction, including public complaints about scoring 'zero out of 100' on a critical parameter, suggests it is resisting this opening. It wants to reassert its gatekeeping role, which is not a sign of confidence, but of institutionalised privilege. Subcontracting is not ecosystem building HAL often cites its vendor base of 6,500+ suppliers and growing private involvement in the Tejas Mk1A. Yet, integration, IP control, and testing remain with HAL. That's subcontracting, not ecosystem development. Globally, aerospace systems are modularised, with specialist firms integrating and certifying subsystems like avionics or flight software. These firms are trusted not just to build, but to deliver. India has the talent. It needs to trust it. India must empower private firms with full integration mandates, testing, certification, and programme management, if it wants them to rise beyond Tier-2 status. Without this leap, India cannot build the kind of agile, scalable defence ecosystem needed for future conflicts. That model cannot deliver the pace or adaptability India needs for future battlespaces. The goal must be not to displace HAL, but to prevent AMCA from being locked into a single-node production model. Building an aerospace ecosystem: What needs to change To achieve success with AMCA and join global aerospace leaders, India must enact the following strategic shifts: End HAL's integration monopoly: Select the AMCA integrator on merit, not entitlement. HAL should compete on equal terms. Select the AMCA integrator on merit, not entitlement. HAL should compete on equal terms. Empower ADA/NFTC as an autonomous design /flight testing authority: Grant ADA and the National Flight Testing Centre (NFTC) full institutional autonomy to function as sovereign design and flight test authorities, free from operational subordination to HAL or any other PSU Grant ADA and the National Flight Testing Centre (NFTC) full institutional autonomy to function as sovereign design and flight test authorities, free from operational subordination to HAL or any other PSU Create a joint venture/SPV : ADA, General Electric Aerospace (as potential engine supplier for initial AMCA Mk 1 units), and the selected integrator should co-anchor AMCA development to streamline workshare, secure funding, and protect intellectual property. : ADA, General Electric Aerospace (as potential engine supplier for initial AMCA Mk 1 units), and the selected integrator should co-anchor AMCA development to streamline workshare, secure funding, and protect intellectual property. ADA's monopoly as a design agency also warrants scrutiny: Countries like the U.S. and South Korea encourage competing design ecosystems, ranging from defence labs to private bureaus, which foster innovation and agility. India needs similar mechanisms to push ADA toward open, iterative design practices. India must choose ecosystem over entitlement India has paid a steep price for HAL's unchecked dominance, evident in the MiG-era overhauls, the decades-long Tejas saga, and the troubled ALH programme. These are not isolated episodes; they reflect deeper systemic risks tied to monopoly control. The AMCA programme offers a rare opportunity to course-correct, not just technically, but institutionally as well. HAL's assertion that a second integrator is unnecessary is not a strategic judgement; it is institutional self-preservation. Nations build aerospace power by fostering competition, accelerating timelines, and scaling industrial ecosystems, not by sheltering incumbents. Notably, the MOD has signalled its intent to shift this paradigm. In a public statement (Business Standard, July 8, 2025), Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh confirmed that a level playing field is being created for private firms to compete for AMCA integration. This policy shift mirrors earlier reforms in shipbuilding and land systems, and must now be followed by precise structural execution. What's needed is not just a level playing field, but a full runway, one that allows India to build, scale, and sustain a resilient aerospace base. Let the best builders lead. Let the strongest ecosystems grow. Private sector entry into AMCA must be viewed as a strategic necessity, central to national capability, rather than just an expansion of the vendor list. The author is a former Flag Officer Naval Aviation, Chief of Staff at the integrated HQ Andaman and Nicobar Command, and Chief Instructor (Navy) at DSSC Wellington. He tweets @sudhirpillai__ Views are personal. (Edited by Prashant)
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Business Standard
27-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Photo feature: Defence technology
The latest around the world, from multirole fighter jets to automatic combat drones Listen to This Article J35A: China's second stealth jet The J-35A or FC-31 is China's fifth-generation stealth fighter jet designated for carrier operations and export markets, as seen during the Airshow China, in Zhuhai on November 12, 2024. Photo: Reuters Advanced version of K9 The K9A2 is a self-propelled howitzer (SPH) produced by Hanwha Defense and is an advanced version of the K9 Thunder. It was displayed at the Eurosatory international land and air defence trade fair in France in June 2024. Photo: Reuters Combat drones
Time of India
20-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Pakistan to get 40 more J-35 stealth jets soon: What are its capabilities and should India be concerned?
China will soon supply 40 J-35 stealth fighter jets to Pakistan, elevating the Pakistan Air Force into the elite league of fifth-generation aircraft operators. According to a government announcement, deliveries are expected to begin by the end of this year. This marks the first international export of the J-35, a platform still in its early stages of deployment even within China's own military. Pakistan will receive the FC-31 variant of the J-35. It's the land-based version designed for export and ground operations, distinct from the naval version meant for China's aircraft carriers. The model is equipped with an infrared search-and-track system mounted on its nose and can link with other weapon systems to share target data. Why It matters for India India currently has no fifth-generation stealth jet in its arsenal. That's a major concern, say defence analysts. Group Captain Ajay Ahlawat (Retd.) told NDTV , "It is worrying news... any version of the J-35 in Pakistani colours is going to raise concerns for our side." While India enjoys superiority with its Rafale and Su-30MKI fighters, the arrival of stealth aircraft in Pakistan could narrow this gap significantly. Ahlawat added that India had considered acquiring either the F-35 or Russia's Su-57 but said, "These are bad choices. The only good choice is AMCA." J-35's capabilities: What we know so far The J-35, also called the J-35A, is China's second fifth-generation fighter after the J-20. Built by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation, the jet made its public debut at the Zhuhai Air Show in November 2024 and later featured in model form at the 2025 Paris Air Show. Live Events This twin-engine, supersonic jet includes features such as an active electronically scanned array radar, an electro-optical targeting system, and a radar cross-section of just 0.001 square metres. That makes it nearly invisible to conventional radars, a capability on par with the U.S. F-35. China Daily reports that the aircraft can "share targets' position with other weapon systems" and can also use its radar to guide other munitions to those targets. Global Times quoted an unnamed expert who said the J-35 gives an advantage in "first detection, first strike," and in securing "operational advantages." China's design push: Inspired or stolen? What's stirred international interest is the J-35's uncanny resemblance to the American F-35 Lightning II. While analysts speculate on whether China borrowed design elements from stolen U.S. data, platforms like The War Zone have noted that copying the F-35 would be nearly impossible due to its complexity. In 2009, the U.S. government confirmed a cyber intrusion targeting its F-35 programme. Frank Kendall, then Pentagon acquisitions chief, admitted in a 2013 Senate hearing, 'I'm reasonably confident that classified information is safe, but not all confident about the unclassified information.' A year later, a Los Angeles grand jury indicted Su Bin, a Chinese businessman, for helping PLA hackers steal over 630,000 files relating to the F-22, F-35 and C-17 aircraft. A wake-up call for India's AMCA programme India's answer to the stealth gap is the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved the execution model in May, but the jet isn't expected to fly before 2035. Until then, experts are urging urgent upgrades to India's air surveillance and defence systems. India's current detection radars may struggle to pick up stealth aircraft like the J-35 until they are too close for comfort. China's ambitions: Mass production on the horizon Wang Yongqing, chief designer at the Shenyang Aircraft Design and Research Institute, told Global Times that the J-35A was created under an "air-sea twin configuration" and "one aircraft, multiple variants" model. This allows for faster development and cheaper production. "Many of our research achievements can be applied across different variants, such as sensors, onboard equipment, and avionics systems," he said. "This will correspondingly reduce future maintenance costs and improve logistical efficiency." Wang compared the J-35A's battlefield role to a basketball point guard: "The J-35A not only demonstrates outstanding 'scoring ability,' but also effectively coordinates other battlefield assets for joint operations." With Pakistan preparing to field a fifth-generation fleet and China ready to mass produce, India finds itself on the back foot. And the clock is ticking. The AMCA remains India's only viable option to restore parity. But the stealth gap is real — and it's already looming over the subcontinent.
NDTV
20-06-2025
- Business
- NDTV
Why India Should Be Worried About Pak Getting Chinese J-35 Stealth Jets
New Delhi: In November 2024 China unveiled the J-35 - its second 5th generation stealth fighter. A twin-engine, single-seater supersonic jet for multirole missions, the J-35 boasts advanced avionics, including an active electronically scanned array, an electro-optical targeting system, and infrared search-and-track. The Global Times, the Chinese government's mouthpiece, described the J-35 - compared to the United States' F-35, the world's most expensive fighter jet - as functioning within a stealth and counter-stealth combat framework to gain and maintain air superiority, while eliminating air defence forces". And Pakistan, which also has 20 Chinese J-10C and JF-17 fighters, will reportedly buy 40 J-35s, with the first units expected later this year, pushing it into an elite club operating stealth fighter jets. Pak will get the toned-down FC-31 but it will still be a stealth jet and India has none. Why should India worry? Because India does not have a stealth fighter. Because Islamabad's purchase of 5th generation aircraft might shift the balance of air power, at least till Delhi can catch up. The J-35 is considered a 'black box' because of the lack of data on its capabilities, but its performance is seen as similar to, and even better than, the US' F-35. But the J-35 has never seen combat. Now, first-look images of the J-35, as the FC-31, surfaced in August 2024. There were two variants - a Navy one and another for conventional ground-based operations and export. The Shenyang J-35A on show in Beijing (File). Pak will likely get the second, which reportedly has the infrared search-and-track in its nose. The jet, China Daily said, can also 'share targets' position with other weapon systems, like surface-to-air missiles, and use its radar to guide other weapons to bring the targets down'. But the big feature here, of course, is the stealth capability. The J-35 reportedly has a radar cross-section of 0.001 sq m, which is comparable to the F-35, and which will make Pak's new fighter jet very difficult to detect in combat scenarios with India. This means India will take longer to detect the jets as it approaches the border. A prototype of India's new 5th-gen stealth fighter, the AMCA (File). There is another point of concern. With China and Pak both operating stealth fighters, India's air defences could come under severe pressure in the event of multi-front hostilities. This means Delhi must address the gap, starting with upgrading existing air defence systems and bring in 5th generation jets of its own, homemade or otherwise. J-35 buy shows chink in India's Armour? India does not have a 5th generation stealth fighter. This is under development - an 'execution model', under the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft programme was cleared last month by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. NDTV Explains | Everything About India's New 5th-Generation Stealth Fighter But the AMCA jet will not patrol India's skies before 2035 at least. Between then and now India, aviation combat experts told NDTV, should be worried. The Indian Air Force has long had an edge over Pak when it comes to air superiority, an advantage emphasised by Delhi's recent acquisition of the French-made Rafales. By 2031 India will have 60+ Rafale fighter jets patroling skies above its land and seas (File). The J-35 deliveries (well, technically the FC-31) threaten to narrow that advantage. "It is worrying news," Group Captain Ajay Ahlawat (retd.), a former fighter pilot, told NDTV, "... any version of the J-35 in Pakistani colours is going to raise concerns for our side." India did consider the purchase option; the F-35 and the Su-57 were on the table. However, these are "bad choices", Group Captain Ahlawat said. "The only good choice is AMCA," he said and called for a "national mission-mode push" to get it in service ASAP.
Hindustan Times
20-06-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
China to supply J-35 fifth-generation stealth fighter jets to Pakistan. How IAF veterans reacted: 'It's worrying news'
Several Indian Air Force (IAF) veterans have raised alarms over reports that China will supply Pakistan with 40 Shenyang J-35 fifth-generation stealth fighter jets. Earlier this month, the government of Pakistan said in a social media post that it would acquire 40 J-35 fifth-generation fighter jets, KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft, and HQ-19 ballistic missile defence systems, Bloomberg reported. The J-35 sale to Pakistan would mark China's first export of the fifth-generation jet, which has advanced stealth capabilities. The fighter jet was developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation and publicly unveiled at the 2024 Zhuhai Airshow. Group Captain (Retd.) Ajay Ahlawat, a former IAF fighter pilot and defence analyst, told NDTV that the development is not a surprise as Pakistani pilots have been training in China. "Pakistan receiving these jets is not a surprise at all because their team of nominated fighter pilots have been in China for more than six months," he told the news channel. Also Read | India's strike on air bases forced Pakistan to request ceasefire, Deputy PM Ishaq Dar admits "They were training on the type before they were inducted. It was reported that the version that China will give to Pakistan is the FC-31, a slightly toned-down version of the J-35, which is practised across the globe. Nobody gives the full version," he added. He further said that Pakistan receiving the J-35 is going to raise concerns in India. Also Read | Amid Iran-Israel war, Pakistan fears Baloch militants rise; Asim Munir raises alarm with Donald Trump "It's worrying news," Group Captain Ahlawat told NDTV. "Ever since independence, we have fought a very hard battle in the procurement sphere to retain an edge over at least Pakistan, if not China. And any version of J-35 in Pakistani colours is going to raise concerns on our side. It's concerning." Air Marshal (Retd.) Sanjeev Kapoor also acknowledged the challenge and said India needs to have its own indigenous platform. "As per news reports, the Pakistanis are likely to get 40 aircraft by December this year," he told NDTV. "Nine to 10 years is the official figure by the time we could induct AMCA (advanced medium combat aircraft). There is absolutely no doubt that we need to have our own indigenous platform. But as a nation, can we wait ten more years with adversaries on both sides acquiring more and better equipment?" Developed by Shenyang Aircraft Corporation, the J-35 is a twin-engine stealth fighter intended to complement the larger J-20 and potentially operate from China's expanding fleet of aircraft carriers. An evolution of the FC-31 prototype showcased at the 2014 Zhuhai Airshow, the J-35 features stealth-enhancing elements such as a streamlined, faceted fuselage, angled vertical stabilisers, and internal weapons bays to minimise its radar signature.
