India to build homegrown jet's engines with French firm

New Delhi: In a major development on India’s future combat aircraft development, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said the country would collaborate with French major Safran to develop engines for homegrown fifth-generation fighter aircraft — the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).

“We have taken steps to build fifth-generation fighter aircraft. We have also moved towards manufacturing the aircraft's engine in India. We are about to start engine-manufacturing work in India with the French company Safran,” Rajnath said here.

The minister’s announcement at a conclave was the first official word on the selection of a partner for the critical engine development. The two other companies in the fray were the US' General Electric and the UK's Rolls-Royce.

The French major is expected to partner with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop the engine, which may power the later versions of the AMCA because engine development is a prolonged procedure.

In May, the Defence Ministry approved the “execution model” for the AMCA programme, setting in motion a government-backed scheme to design, develop, and manufacture fifth-generation combat jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF).

The Bengaluru-based Aeronautical Development Agency was selected as the lead organisation to execute the programme with industry partnership, be it in the public or private sector.

The Union government’s go-ahead came more than a year after the Cabinet Committee on Security, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, greenlit the AMCA project, sanctioning Rs 15,000 crore to design and develop five prototypes.

Safran Aircraft Engine is in the process of constructing a new MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) facility in Hyderabad for the M88 engine used in Rafale combat jets currently being flown by the IAF. The Hyderabad centre is expected to be a global facility, servicing engines coming from other countries as well.

At the conclave, Rajnath said Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir shouldn’t be under any delusion about India’s ability to hit hard after Operation Sindoor.

On Munir’s comment equating Pakistan’s economy with a dumper truck and India's with a Ferrari or Mercedes, a statement for which he was trolled widely, Rajnath said it was an admission of Pakistan’s failure in the last seven decades.

"If two countries get independence together, and one builds an economy like a sports car with hard work, right policies, and vision, while the other remains stuck in failure, it is its own doing. This is not a joke, it is a confession,” he said.