MMRCA 2.0 - Updates and Discussions
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Exclusive: What Rafale plan looks like—TATA, L&T, Mahindra and HAL
New Delhi: French aircraft major Dassault Aviation has proposed a partnership with the Tata Group to establish the final assembly line (FAL) for the Rafale fighter aircraft in India, ThePrint has learnt. This will be the first time the company sets up a Rafale assembly line outside France.
Sources in the defence and security establishment say, the French government’s technical and commercial submission in connection with India’s planned acquisition of 114 Rafale fighters also lays out a detailed industrial partnership roadmap involving the four principal French/European companies associated with the programme.
Under the proposal, missile manufacturer MBDA is expected to partner with Larsen & Toubro (L&T), electronics and avionics major Thales with the Mahindra Group and engine maker Safran with state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
The partnership with HAL will include work related to both the Rafale and India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme.
The proposed partnerships form part of France’s response to India’s Letter of Request (LoR), submitted under the government-to-government procurement process. The Indian side received the French proposal on 29 July and is currently studying its contents.
Sources said most of India’s key requirements have been addressed, although the proposal is still being examined in detail.
“The major requirements have been met. The proposal is under evaluation,” a source said adding that if no major clarification is needed, the process will shift to cost and contract negotiations.
The aim, officials added, is to conclude negotiations and sign the contract for the 114 fighters before the end of the current financial year.
If the deal goes through, the Indian Air Force will have ordered 150 Rafales—36 already in service and another 114 under the new contract. Together with the 26 Rafale M fighters contracted for the Indian Navy, India’s total Rafale fleet on order will rise to 176 aircraft.
The sources said the costs proposed by France fall within the DAC cleared proposal worth Rs 3.25 lakh crore.
Indigenisation roadmap
As first reported by ThePrint in June this year, the IAF has sought a minimum of 40 percent indigenous content for the Rafale F4* fighters to be manufactured in India, with the local component increasing to 60 percent in the final production batch.The French proposal includes a detailed roadmap to achieve these targets through manufacturing partnerships, technology transfer and local sourcing.
Sources added Dassault has also proposed establishing a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India, which, over the aircraft’s lifecycle, could increase the effective domestic value addition to nearly 80 percent.
ThePrint had first reported in April 2025 that the government had decided to pursue the acquisition of 114 Rafales under a government-to-government arrangement. In the second half of 2025, the IAF formally initiated the proposal, following which discussions were held between New Delhi and Paris.
If the recent Turkish EF2000 deal is any indication, we would've had to pay a premium for our 114 Rafales anyway as the price for getting 120kN TF tech from France.
What remains to be seen is the cost of the engine co-development contract which was earlier pegged at around $8b.
If a variant of M88 does replace F404/F414 on LCA Mk1/2, then the finak bill could be much higher than expected though.
All said and done, it's pay day for the French defence industry.
What remains to be seen is the cost of the engine co-development contract which was earlier pegged at around $8b.
If a variant of M88 does replace F404/F414 on LCA Mk1/2, then the finak bill could be much higher than expected though.
All said and done, it's pay day for the French defence industry.
Based on the developing geo-political equations, I think partnership with France is not a bad option as long as India's ambition and capabilities are matching. The major portion of upcoming Indigenous fighters , be it Mk1A, Mk2, AMCA Mk1 , are based on major US components. On the other hand India has a detailed experience with Russian systems. That's why I think this decision is taken as per my assumptions.
I agree. Geopolitically France is the safest option for us, next only to Russia. End user restrictions will also likely be minimal (esp w/regard to potential adaptation for the N delivery role). But will our $35b-$40b investment give us long-term ROI in terms of ToT for core avionics, lru's, ew, etc? Until recently, we were scrounging around for used Jag and M2000 airframes for cannibalization.
The UAE's backing out of funding the development of the F5 variant isn't a good sign of things changing much in the future either.
Its weird that they are choosing Mahindra for electronics & avionics. It should be BEL as they already have partnership with them for RBE2/SPECTRA.
