The contest to select India’s manufacturing partner for the Advanced Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (AMCA) has escalated into a high-stakes institutional battle, with protests reaching the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA)—the nodal design body responsible for conceptualisation of the project, according to a report by Manu Pubby of ET News.

The AMCA, earmarked as India’s fifth-generation fighter development program, is seen as a critical element in strengthening indigenous aerospace capabilities and reducing long-term dependence on foreign suppliers.

At the heart of the dispute lies the expression of interest (EOI) floated by ADA in June, which invited both public and private sector companies to compete for the role of developmental partner tasked with producing at least five AMCA prototypes before moving to eventual series production following certification and induction.

While the initiative was envisioned to create a more level playing field, discontent has arisen over certain qualifying criteria, especially those tied to financial performance.

The immediate flashpoint has been the financial evaluation metrics, particularly the clause linking a company’s eligibility to the “revenue-to-order book ratio.”

This benchmark, according to officials, was introduced to prevent the concentration of all aeronautical manufacturing work within a single public sector entity and to ensure that new hubs of aerospace capability could emerge in India’s private sector.

Crucially, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)—the state-owned giant and obvious frontrunner in the competition—has protested against the clause, arguing that it places the organisation at a structural disadvantage.

HAL maintains an order book worth over ₹2 lakh crore, with massive ongoing work involving light combat aircraft, advanced trainer jets, helicopters, and upgrade programs.

Because of this backlog, HAL’s revenue-to-order book ratio appears disproportionately weak, thereby earning it no points under the EOI metric. HAL has formally conveyed its objections to ADA, submitting that the qualifying parameters are skewed against its bid and tilt the balance in favour of private competitors who do not face such burdens.

The protests mark a turning point in India’s attempt to diversify aerospace manufacturing by actively encouraging private participation. For years, private companies have argued that competing with HAL on a level playing field is nearly impossible because of the extensive government investment in HAL’s infrastructure spanning decades.

Many firms have pointed out that the capital intensity, domain knowledge, and specialised facilities in aeronautical production are absent in the private sector and would require time and state backing to develop. Consequently, the Ministry of Defence structured the AMCA partnership scheme to explicitly allow private entities to compete meaningfully.

The plans include the provision of critical prototyping infrastructure directly by ADA, ensuring no inherent advantage accrues to HAL on the basis of legacy facilities alone. The defence ministry’s rationale is to prevent the formation of a single choke point in India’s fighter jet production landscape, which would otherwise rest entirely on HAL, already stretched across multiple high-value programs.

The revenue-to-order book clause, however, represents more than just an accounting criterion. It reflects a policy-level intent to reshuffle India’s aerospace industrial landscape. By penalising HAL’s sheer volume of commitments while neutralising its infrastructural advantage, policymakers are visibly tilting the table towards drawing private players into the fold.

The move signals an acknowledgement that HAL alone cannot carry the burden of upcoming national aviation projects, which besides AMCA also include the Gaganyaan program’s crew module systems, AMCA engines in collaboration with foreign OEMs, and continued Tejas Mk1A/Tejas Mk2 manufacturing runs.

For policymakers, distributing load across multiple firms not only reduces risk but also strengthens India’s defence industrial resilience in the long run.

However, HAL’s opposition underscores that the conflict could create institutional friction at a critical juncture. Sources indicate that one possible resolution being explored is to mandate or incentivise HAL to form a joint venture or consortium with a private partner under the AMCA program.

Such an arrangement would allow HAL to leverage its expertise while transferring capacity and know-how to private industry, creating an alternate aeronautical hub. HAL, too, may see benefits in load sharing as its order backlog leaves little room for new absorption without risking delays to existing commitments.

The Ministry of Defence is aware that the program’s timelines cannot afford conflict-driven slowdowns, having already projected AMCA as a cornerstone for India’s 2030+ combat fleet strategy.

Private companies, meanwhile, view this opportunity as a watershed moment. While acknowledging limited prior experience in aircraft manufacturing, firms argue that the AMCA program—structured with government-provided infrastructure and R&D support—could help India replicate in military aerospace what has been achieved in sectors like missiles, radars, and UAVs: a thriving public-private ecosystem.

For them, the EOI’s terms are an explicit affirmation that they are being treated as genuine contenders, not token participants. The last date for submission of applications has already been extended to September 30 to accommodate multiple meetings with potential bidders, signalling ADA’s intent to secure broad-based and serious participation.

At stake is not only India’s fifth-generation stealth-capable combat aircraft program but also the future architecture of its defence manufacturing ecosystem. HAL’s protest represents a pushback against criteria that dilute its traditional primacy, while the government appears strongly inclined to encourage structural reform in the aerospace domain.

The eventual outcome—whether a private firm secures prototype production rights, whether HAL partners with a private consortium, or whether a hybrid solution emerges—will shape the trajectory of India’s fighter jet industrial base for the next three decades.

If managed deftly, AMCA could become the pivot around which India transitions from a HAL-dominated model towards a multi-polar aerospace industry, capable of simultaneously serving massive domestic requirements and competing internationally in high-value defence exports.

Quick timeline checklist of AMCA’s industrial strategy milestones:

Data/TimelineEvent / MilestoneKey Details / Significance
June 2025Expression of Interest (EOI) issued by ADAInvited both public and private Indian companies to participate as developmental partners for AMCA prototype manufacturing.
July–August 2025Industry consultations heldMeetings organised between ADA, HAL, and private sector players to clarify terms of participation and facility-sharing arrangements.
August 2025HAL protest lodged with ADAHAL challenges the financial criteria (revenue-to-order book ratio), claiming bias due to its heavy ₹2 lakh crore backlog.
September 2025EOI deadline extendedLast date pushed to September 30, 2025 to allow broader participation and resolution of stakeholders’ concerns.
Q4 2025 (Expected)Evaluation of bids and partner selection process beginsADA will assess responses, with emphasis on financials, manufacturing capability, and potential for creating private-sector aerospace hubs.
2026 (Projected)Finalisation of industrial partnership modelPossible HAL-private JV or consortium model to balance expertise with private sector ecosystem-building.
2026–2028Prototype construction phaseDevelopment of at least 5 AMCA prototypes, leveraging ADA-provided infrastructure and chosen industrial partners.
2028–2029Testing and evaluation periodPrototype flight tests, systems integration, stealth validation, and certification processes initiated.
~2030 onwardsInitial production orders expectedUpon successful certification, scaled production orders to follow. Private sector role expected to expand alongside HAL in production.
Beyond 2030sFull-scale AMCA induction and export potential exploredAMCA enters IAF service; industrial base matures from public-sector centric to multi-node public-private partnerships in advanced aerospace.


IDN (With Inputs From ET News)