Centre Invites Bids For ₹1 Lakh Crore Indian Air Force Transport Aircraft Deal
Centre seeks bids for a major IAF transport aircraft purchase.
The Centre has invited bids for the acquisition of 60 medium transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force under a programme estimated at nearly Rs 1 lakh crore. The tender will involve Indian companies partnering with foreign aerospace manufacturers, with the domestic firms taking the lead in setting up production facilities, manufacturing aircraft in India and developing maintenance and overhaul capabilities.
The Request for Proposal has been issued to Tata Group, Mahindra Defence, Adani Defence and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). Each Indian bidder will be required to partner with a foreign original equipment manufacturer and establish a final assembly line in India. The programme will follow the Buy and Make route, under which 12 aircraft will be acquired in flyaway condition while the remaining 48 will be manufactured domestically.
The aircraft built in India will initially require at least 40 per cent indigenous content, with the requirement set to rise to 60 per cent in phases. The programme is intended to replace the IAF’s ageing fleet of more than 100 Antonov An-32 transport aircraft, which entered service in the 1980s. The proposed aircraft will also fill the capability gap between the approximately nine-tonne C-295 and the larger C-17 Globemaster III, which can carry more than 70 tonnes.
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The IAF is seeking aircraft capable of carrying between 18 and 30 tonnes while operating from high-altitude airfields and short, semi-prepared runways. Such capabilities are particularly important for operations in areas such as Ladakh and the Northeast, where difficult terrain can restrict surface transportation. Experience during the military standoff in eastern Ladakh also reinforced the importance of rapid airlift for moving troops, equipment and supplies to high-altitude locations.
Several potential aircraft-industry partnerships are emerging as major contenders. Tata Group has partnered with Lockheed Martin for the C-130J Super Hercules, which the IAF already operates, while Mahindra Defence has tied up with Brazil’s Embraer for the C-390 Millennium. HAL has revived its engagement with Russia after an earlier joint multi-role transport aircraft programme between the two sides was discontinued in 2016 following disagreements over design and development.
Airbus, which had offered its A400M after the IAF issued a Request for Information in 2022, is reportedly unlikely to participate because the aircraft’s approximately 37-tonne payload capacity exceeds the range specified in the current requirement. The Defence Acquisition Council cleared the proposed acquisition in March, and the process will now move through technical evaluation, field trials and commercial negotiations before the final selection is made.
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