By SANKALAN CHATTOPADHYAY for Livefist
The “Fifth-generation Fighter Aircraft” (FGFA) program promised the Indian Air Force (IAF) a stealthy, highly maneuverable, highly agile, and advanced network-centric platform to face the evolving multi-domain collaborative combat environment of the future. It was to be a further improved variant of the Russian Su-57, then known as “PAK-FA.”
Russia initiated the “Perspektivnyy Aviatsionnyy Kompleks Frontovoy Aviatsii” (PAK-FA, Istrebitel-21) program as a follow-on project to some earlier futile attempts to counter the USAF’s Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF). PAK-FA was envisioned as a future replacement for both the Su-27 and the MiG-29. Sukhoi proposed the T-50 concept, which was accepted in 2002 as the lead design. At the time, the first flight was envisioned for 2007. However, it was only executed in 2010, and the platform entered service as the Su-57 in 2020.
The India-Russia Partnership
In 2000, Mikhail Pogosyan, then head of Sukhoi, first proposed to India a potential partnership in the development of the future PAK-FA. Progress was slow for several years. However, on January 24, 2007, at the prestigious “Aero India,” India and Russia took the world by storm by announcing the joint development of the fifth-generation fighter jet. PAK-FA was envisioned as a replacement for the MiG-29, Jaguar, and Mirage-2000 fleets of the IAF. The first flight of the platform was expected in 2009, with serial production commencing in 2015. At the time, India was already manufacturing the Su-30MKI, and this program was expected to surpass the “BrahMos” missile project in success. Pogosyan stated that India and Russia would share funding, engineering, and intellectual property on a 50-50 basis. The following year, Ashok Baweja, chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL), revealed that the IAF version of the FGFA would differ significantly from the PAK-FA and would include a twin-seater variant. Each nation would develop one prototype.
However, in 2009, Pogosyan reiterated that India’s FGFA would essentially be the same platform as the PAK-FA but with different software. In 2010, HAL was tasked with 25% of the design and development work, which included the mission computer, navigation systems, cockpit displays, countermeasure dispensing systems (CMD), and transforming the single-seat version into a twin-seat variant. India’s requirement was projected at 250 platforms. The project cost was estimated at $8–10 billion (then ₹37,000–45,000 crore), with a hoped-for unit cost of ₹400–500 crore. The joint venture also aimed to export 600 units once successful.
Project Development and Initial Challenges
On December 21, 2010, HAL and Russia’s SDB signed a “Preliminary Design (PD) Contract” for the FGFA at a cost of $295 million. The FGFA was subsequently renamed the “Prospective Multi-Role Fighter” (PMF). Under the contract, the PD phase was to last 18 months, after which the “Full-Scale Design & Development” phase would begin under a separate agreement. At the time, India anticipated a total of 250 platforms with an estimated $35 billion total cost. The PMF was slated for induction into the IAF by 2018.
Escalating Costs and Technical Concerns
However, the project faced numerous hurdles. In 2011, then-IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne announced that the IAF intended to procure 166 single-seat and 48 twin-seat platforms. This requirement was later reduced to 144 units amid rising costs, and only a single-seat variant was considered. India committed to investing $6 billion in the program, but by 2012, delays pushed the timeline back by two years. A “Tactical Technical Assignment” agreement was signed to address 45 necessary improvements. Despite this, progress stalled, and induction was further delayed to 2022. By then, the Indian investment was revised to $5.5 billion (50% of the total estimated cost), with a unit cost of $100 million.
During this period, rumors circulated about India’s interest in the F-35A, although this was officially denied. The FGFA project continued to face challenges, and by 2015, the number of PMFs was further reduced to just 127. To accelerate the program, India abandoned the 50-50 work share and design agreement, opting to procure some initial platforms directly from Russia. However, Russia itself reduced its planned order to just 18–24 units, raising further concerns for India. Subsequently, Russia revised India’s investment requirement to $3.7 billion and offered three prototypes for study. Nevertheless, the IAF flagged over 40 deficiencies, including concerns about the platform’s stealth, radar, and engine reliability. Russia’s reluctance to share critical technology further demoralized India’s initial enthusiasm. By 2017, Moscow demanded $6.7 billion (₹44,800 crore) for four prototypes, with the first deliveries pushed to 2027–28. The estimated cost per platform was feared to reach $250 million, making the overall expenditure a staggering $40 billion.
Fearing exorbitant costs, inadequate technology transfer, and a less capable platform, India reevaluated the program. A committee under Air Marshal (retired) S. Varthaman was set up to assess the feasibility of the PMF in comparison to India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) program. While the committee emphasized that the FGFA would provide valuable knowledge for the AMCA, India ultimately decided to pull out of the project.
Decline and Termination
On April 20, 2018, it was reported that India had officially exited the FGFA program in February. Although UAC head Yury Slyusar claimed India might later acquire a license to manufacture the platform, no further developments occurred. In 2019, then-Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa clarified that the platform would only be considered if inducted by the Russian Air Force. His successor, ACM R.K.S. Bhadauria, firmly dismissed the possibility of procuring any foreign fifth-generation fighter aircraft, reaffirming full support for India’s AMCA program. This effectively marked the end of the FGFA project.
The FGFA Legacy
The Su-57 was finally inducted into the Russian Air Force in 2020. As of December 2024, only 76 units have reportedly been ordered—a fraction of the original target. For India, the failure of both the FGFA and the MMRCA (Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft) programs has exacerbated its fighter squadron shortages. The FGFA program highlights the challenges of international defense collaborations, especially when objectives, costs, and timelines diverge. The FGFA’s legacy, though marred by delays and unfulfilled promises, underscores the importance of self-reliance in defense technology. The IAF’s current quest for a fifth-generation fighter jet now hinges solely on the indigenous AMCA program.
Sankalan Chattopadhyay is a freelance aviation and defence writer. He tweets at @VinodDX9. This is his first column for Livefist.