The Gripen Partnership meet is meant to encourage its existing suppliers to meet and partner potential Indian suppliers for a potential Make in India Gripen production line.
An agreement of intention between Lockheed Martin and Tata to build F-16 fighters should not be mistaken for an actual order from the Indian Air Force.
The Indian Navy is set to take a decision on the future of the naval LCA and will be considering alternatives for fighters to operate from what will be a CATOBAR Indigenous Aircraft Carrier-2 (IAC-2).
Saab proposes to train Indian engineers in Sweden to build Indian Gripen aircraft while simultaneously building a greenfield facility for Make in India.
The post-MMRCA narrative unfolding since April is one in which the Modi government has quietly reached out to at least three foreign OEMs to invite interest in building fighter aircraft in India.
Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar: ‘A replacement (for the MiG-21) could be the LCA Tejas or another – I’ll not call it low end – but a single engine lighter aircraft. Tejas is a good aircraft but it has its limitations.’
Air Marshal M Matheshwaran analyzes exactly why the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft will never fully meet the ASR and cannot become the IAF ‘s frontline fighter in the Lo segment.