US-based Aerospace Manufacturer Lockheed Martin Corporation recently announced that it is willing to build up an F-21 maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility in India to sweeten its offer for the 114 fighter aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF)..Lockheed has already formed a partnership with the Tata Group to produce the planes in India.
Michael Kelley, Vice President of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Strategy and Business Development for India, and Brett Medlin, the F-21 India campaign lead, are in India to discuss the multibillion-dollar contract with the government and IAF officials. This comes as India prepares to purchase 114 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) for the Indian Air Force. The F-18 of Boeing, the Gripen of Sweden's SAAB, the Rafale of Dassault Aviation, the Eurofighter Typhoon of EADS, and the MiG-35 of Russia's United Aircraft Corp are all competitors.
Lockheed has already formed a partnership with the Tata Group to produce the planes in India. It has earlier stated that if the MMRCA agreement is secured, it will move its production line to India and will not sell the F-21 to any other country. According to Kelly, once you build an aeroplane and put it together in the country, you automatically know how to disassemble it.
Mr Kelley further stated that once the final assembly and checkout capability is in place, the MRO's core competencies are attained. When you factor in the ecosystem of avionics and subsystems, Indian firms will be feeding the checkout facilities through the supply chain. So, sure, MRO will almost certainly be an option. It has to be competitive because the IAF would clearly want to conduct the MRO here, but getting other aircraft to do MRO requires Indian business to be competitive in bringing that job to India.
According to experts, once an MRO facility is created in India, the aircraft will not need to be transported to the United States or other nations where Lockheed has an established MRO unit. However, because Lockheed does not manufacture engines, it is unclear if this means an engine overhaul will take place at the Indian plant. Mr Kelley expressed optimism that India will make a decision on MMRCA procurement by the first quarter of 2022.
When asked how the F-21 would fit in with the IAF's requirements, Mr Medlin said that the F-21 complimented both the Tejas and the Rafale from an operational standpoint. The IAF has already purchased 36 Rafales from France and has allocated 48,000 crores to state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd to manufacture 83 Tejas, a light combat aircraft. According to Mr Medlin, if one assesses the Indian Air Force's fighter squadron needs, the IAF is operating considerably below that. When you compare the rate of Tejas deliveries to their requirements, and the force structure deficit that the IAF has, the F-21 will assist address that gap in capacity and capabilities for the IAF.
The Indian Air Force has 30 squadrons instead of the sanctioned 42, owing to the retirement of its outdated Russian MiG fighter planes.