India to float AMCA RFP soon, pushes private sector role and explores sixth-gen fighters

India’s push to build its fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft is picking up pace, with the government preparing to invite bids from private companies, even as it quietly begins exploring partnerships for next-generation, sixth-generation fighter aircraft.

The development, shared by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh on Thursday, signals a shift in how India plans to build and scale its future combat aviation capabilities, with an emphasis on competition and multiple production lines rather than reliance on a single entity.

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Speaking at the ANI National Security Summit 2.0 in New Delhi, Singh said the procurement process for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft is underway and a Request for Proposal (RFP) is expected to be issued soon to shortlisted private sector players.

“The procurement process is on, the RFP hopefully will be released soon to the shortlisted bidders who happen to be from the private sector and hopefully that will then pick up pace,” he said.

Why government is backing multiple fighter production lines

The Defence Secretary made it clear that India’s long-term strategy is to avoid overdependence on a single manufacturer, pointing to global practices where countries maintain parallel production capabilities.

“I think most of our major defence producers in the world, the US, the Russians, the Chinese, all have two fighter production lines in two separate companies,” Singh said, adding that “putting all your eggs in one basket is not a good idea.”

Addressing concerns over the absence of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited from the AMCA prototype stage, he said the door remains open for participation later.

“We would have been perfectly happy if HAL were there in AMCA, but even if they are not, I would imagine this is the prototype stage, so at the production stage, they could still get their chance,” he said.

Singh stressed that diversification across industry partners would help reduce supply chain risks and strengthen resilience in defence manufacturing.

India explores sixth-generation fighter partnerships

Looking ahead, Singh indicated that India is also exploring collaboration on sixth-generation fighter aircraft, given the massive investment such programmes require.

“We’ve made it clear… that we are interested and we could consider partnering them for a sixth generation fighter program. Let’s see what the response is,” he said.

Missile force to be multi-layered, says DRDO chief

On the missile front, Samir V Kamat said India is working towards building a layered conventional missile force covering short, medium and long ranges.

He explained that such a system would include ballistic missiles across different ranges, along with cruise and hypersonic capabilities for varied tactical roles.

“For short-range ballistic missiles, the Pralaye, which is now in the final stages of testing, that should be ready,” Kamat said.

He added that some existing strategic missiles could be adapted for tactical use in medium and longer ranges.

On hypersonic systems, Kamat said India is working on both glide and cruise variants, with the glide missile programme currently at a more advanced stage.

“The glide missile will come out first… we should be doing the first trials fairly soon,” he said, adding that the cruise missile programme is awaiting formal sanction.

Highlighting a key breakthrough, he noted that India recently achieved scramjet propulsion for more than 1,000 seconds, which will be crucial for future hypersonic systems.

IAF capability gaps being addressed, contracts likely in a year

The Defence Secretary also pointed to ongoing efforts to address gaps in the Indian Air Force, including fighter aircraft, refuellers and airborne warning systems.

“All three categories we’ve put on the procurement cycle… and hopefully we’ll be signing contracts in about a year or so,” Singh said.

Emerging security alignments flagged by defence leadership

Meanwhile, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit warned of growing coordination among adversaries, particularly in equipment supply and intelligence sharing.

“Without being too open about this answer… yes, we are aware what is happening amongst various adversaries and how they are shaking hands with each other,” he said.

He pointed out that a significant portion of equipment used by one adversary is supplied by another, and flagged the emergence of additional players in this alignment.

Push for indigenous defence ecosystem

The government’s current approach builds on last year’s approval of the AMCA execution model by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, aimed at strengthening India’s domestic aerospace ecosystem through industry partnerships.

The summit itself also saw Singh reiterate India’s position on national security, including its stance on terrorism and preparedness for prolonged conflict scenarios.