India is moving into a decisive phase of its indigenous defence modernisation with plans to co-develop and manufacture advanced fighter jet engines on home soil, in partnership with a French aerospace company. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, speaking at a high-level defence industry conference in New Delhi on Friday, revealed that India has begun preparations to launch local production of combat aircraft engines, a move that could fundamentally transform the country’s aerospace industry and defence ecosystem.
The announcement comes just three months after Singh formally approved the prototype development of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), a fifth-generation stealth fighter programme designed to be the cornerstone of the Indian Air Force (IAF) in the coming decades. The minister hailed the AMCA project as “a significant push towards enhancing India’s indigenous defence capabilities” and framed the new jet engine initiative as a complementary breakthrough that would reduce long-standing dependence on foreign suppliers.
“We are moving forward to manufacture aircraft engines in India itself,” Singh said in remarks broadcast by national media. “We are collaborating with a French company to start engine production in India.”
Although Singh refrained from naming the partner, multiple Indian outlets reported that the company is Safran – the French aerospace giant that has a decades-long track record in India, ranging from civil aviation engines for Air India and IndiGo fleets to key defence projects such as the Shakti helicopter engine. Safran has also been actively engaged in discussions with Indian officials in recent years over fighter engine technology transfer, particularly for the AMCA. While neither Safran nor the French government immediately confirmed Singh’s statement, defence industry insiders consider the collaboration all but certain.
India is the world’s largest arms importer, consistently ranking near the top of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) defence import lists. For decades, the Indian military has relied heavily on foreign suppliers—Russia for combat aircraft and armoured vehicles, the U.S. for advanced surveillance systems, and Europe for aircraft and submarines.
The reliance has been especially stark in the domain of aircraft engines, often described by military analysts as the “heart” of aerospace power. India’s indigenous combat aircraft programmes, from the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) to the upcoming AMCA, have faced repeated delays and performance limitations due to difficulties in acquiring or developing powerful, reliable jet engines. The indigenous Kaveri engine project, initiated in the 1980s, has yet to yield an operational product despite billions in investment.
By launching domestic manufacturing of advanced fighter engines with a proven foreign partner, India hopes to break what has been one of its most persistent technological bottlenecks. Singh emphasized that the initiative is not merely about licensed production but about acquiring design, testing, and integration expertise that can sustain a fully independent aerospace ecosystem.
“This step will reduce our dependence on imports, and simultaneously create a strong foundation for self-reliance in future combat aircraft programmes,” Singh said.
At the centre of India’s ambitions lies the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), a fifth-generation stealth multirole fighter designed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Intended to replace ageing fleets of MiG-29s, Mirage 2000s, and Jaguars, the AMCA is envisioned as a stealthy, twin-engine aircraft with supercruise capability, advanced avionics, and sensor fusion comparable to the American F-35 and Chinese J-20.
The prototype approval in May marked the project’s transition from concept to engineering development, with the first flight targeted for early 2030s. But one of the AMCA’s biggest hurdles has been securing a suitable engine.
The initial AMCA prototypes are expected to fly with the American GE F414 engine, already chosen for the Tejas Mk-2 fighter. However, for long-term production and full performance potential—including thrust-to-weight ratios required for stealth and supercruise—India has sought a joint-development pathway for a next-generation engine. The collaboration with France is seen as the key to bridging that gap.
Industry experts suggest that a co-developed Safran-India engine could provide thrust in the 110–125 kN class, placing it in direct competition with top-tier powerplants such as the American F135 (used in the F-35 Lightning II) and the Russian AL-41F (used in the Su-57). If successful, it would be the most powerful combat jet engine ever produced in India.
The collaboration also underscores the rapidly growing defence relationship between India and France. In April, New Delhi signed a multi-billion-dollar deal to acquire 26 Rafale Marine fighters for its navy, building on the earlier purchase of 36 Rafale jets for the IAF. The Rafale contracts have cemented France’s position as one of India’s closest defence partners, supplanting Russia in many high-technology domains.
The partnership extends beyond aircraft. France has offered cooperation in space-based surveillance, nuclear submarines, and air defence. India’s increasing reliance on French defence firms comes at a time when New Delhi is rebalancing its procurement portfolio away from Moscow, whose reliability has been questioned in the wake of the Ukraine war and resulting sanctions.
Safran’s participation in local engine production is seen as a strategic investment not only in India’s defence sector but also in its political partnership. French President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly signaled support for India’s push for defence sovereignty, framing it as compatible with France’s Indo-Pacific strategy and its emphasis on strategic autonomy.
Singh’s announcement also fits into the broader trajectory of India’s defence industrial policy. The Modi government has consistently promoted the “Atmanirbhar Bharat” (Self-Reliant India) initiative, setting ambitious targets for local production across all military domains. Singh has pledged at least US$100 billion in new domestic military hardware contracts by 2033, with a significant share earmarked for aerospace.
The past five years have witnessed several milestones:
The commissioning of INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier.
The opening of a state-of-the-art helicopter manufacturing facility in Karnataka.
The rollout of new indigenous warships and nuclear submarines.
A successful long-range test of a hypersonic missile system, signaling India’s entry into a rarefied club of advanced military powers.
By adding fighter engine production to this list, India aims to build an integrated ecosystem where aircraft hulls, avionics, sensors, and engines are all produced domestically or under deep co-development arrangements.
India’s urgency to accelerate its defence capabilities is not merely economic—it is driven by strategic threats on multiple fronts. Singh’s announcement came just months after India’s most serious military clash with Pakistan since the 1999 Kargil War. In May, Indian and Pakistani forces engaged in a four-day standoff along contested borders, a confrontation that saw intense aerial skirmishes and artillery exchanges.
At the same time, tensions with China remain high along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), with frequent troop deployments and infrastructure buildups in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh. Beijing’s rapid military modernization, including the deployment of stealth fighters like the J-20 and advancements in hypersonic weapons, has further pressured New Delhi to respond with equivalent capabilities.
Analysts argue that without indigenous engines, India’s future combat aircraft programmes risk stagnation, leaving the country reliant on foreign suppliers during crises. The Safran collaboration, therefore, is as much a geopolitical hedge as it is an industrial opportunity.
Despite the optimism, the path to developing a world-class fighter jet engine is fraught with challenges. Globally, only a handful of countries—the U.S., Russia, France, and the U.K.—have successfully developed indigenous engines for top-tier fighters. The process involves cutting-edge metallurgy, turbine blade technology, advanced cooling systems, and long-term endurance testing.
India’s past struggles with the Kaveri programme illustrate the scale of the challenge. Even with decades of effort, the Kaveri failed to meet thrust requirements for the Tejas fighter. Critics warn that without sustained investment, rigorous project management, and genuine transfer of sensitive technology, the new collaboration risks becoming another assembly project rather than a true co-development.
There are also concerns about balancing partnerships. India is simultaneously working with the U.S., having recently cleared the transfer of GE’s F414 engine technology for the Tejas Mk-2. Defence planners must now navigate the complex task of integrating both American and French pathways while ensuring domestic capabilities are not reduced to mere licensed assembly lines.
Defence analysts across India have greeted the announcement with cautious optimism.
Air Marshal (Retd.) Anil Chopra, Director-General of the Centre for Air Power Studies, said:
“Engines are the Achilles’ heel of India’s aerospace industry. If this collaboration leads to genuine know-how transfer, it will be a game changer for the AMCA and beyond. But we must insist on design participation, not just manufacturing rights.”
Defence industry executives, meanwhile, pointed out the potential for job creation and technology spillovers. “Engine development will require new test facilities, supply chains, and materials expertise. This could catalyze an entire ecosystem of SMEs (small and medium enterprises) in India’s aerospace hubs,” said a senior executive at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
Internationally, the announcement has been noted with interest. U.S. defence observers have suggested that India’s simultaneous engagement with both Safran and GE demonstrates New Delhi’s strategy of maintaining diversified partnerships to avoid overdependence on any one supplier.
If timelines hold, the first indigenous French-Indian fighter engine could be ready by the early 2030s, coinciding with the AMCA’s projected induction window. Defence officials suggest that the engine could also power future variants of the Tejas, unmanned combat aircraft, and possibly even next-generation naval fighters.
The collaboration represents more than a defence contract—it signals India’s intention to move into the elite club of nations capable of producing every critical subsystem of a combat aircraft. It also deepens India’s long-term strategic alignment with France, complementing other partnerships in the Quad framework with the U.S., Japan, and Australia.
Singh concluded his address with a broader vision:
“Our goal is not just to buy technology, but to build it, own it, and innovate upon it. The engine project will mark the beginning of a new era of Indian aerospace power.”
