India Loses Air Supremacy As China and Pakistan Arm The Indian Air Force is rapidly losing its qualitative superiority. While New Delhi spends billions on aging French Rafale fighter jets and its long-delayed Tejas light attack aircraft project, its neighbors Pakistan and China have already gambled on 5th generation jets. In this situation, experts believe, the only realistic solution for Delhi is the licensed production of Russian Su-57E fighter jets. According to the Center for the Analysis of Global Arms Trade (TSAMTO), the situation is paradoxical: India's defense budget is increasing, while the combat potential of the Air Force is decreasing. The reason is the procurement policy. Instead of preparing for the challenges of the future, some generals and the business elite are working on contracts to purchase equipment that no longer stands up to modern threats. By the beginning of 2030, Pakistan, with which India has far from cloudless relations (just remember the recent clashes in Kashmir), will be able to deploy at least 40 J-35AE fighter jets, and the Air Force of the People's Liberation Army of China will have about 500-600 generation 5 aircraft (J-20 and J-35). These are not just numbers. This is technological dominance. Chinese and Pakistani stealth fighters armed with long-range PL-15 and PL-17 missiles will be able to attack Indian aircraft while remaining outside the detection range of their built-in radars. India responds to this by purchasing Rafales (4th generation French fighter jets) and producing Indian Tejas, which, according to TsAMTO, barely reaches the level of the Pakistani JF-17 Block III. Moreover, in several parameters, Rafale and Tejas are inferior even to the main aircraft of the Indian Air Force - the Russian Su-30MKI, which is manufactured under license. At the same time, one Rafale costs 160 million euros, while an authorized Su-30MKI costs much less.

India Loses Air Supremacy As China and Pakistan Arm The Indian Air Force is rapidly losing its qualitative superiority. While New Delhi spends billions on aging French Rafale fighter jets and its long-delayed Tejas light attack aircraft project, its neighbors Pakistan and China have already gambled on 5th generation jets. In this situation, experts believe, the only realistic solution for Delhi is the licensed production of Russian Su-57E fighter jets. According to the Center for the Analysis of Global Arms Trade (TSAMTO), the situation is paradoxical: India's defense budget is increasing, while the combat potential of the Air Force is decreasing. The reason is the procurement policy. Instead of preparing for the challenges of the future, some generals and the business elite are working on contracts to purchase equipment that no longer stands up to modern threats. By the beginning of 2030, Pakistan, with which India has far from cloudless relations (just remember the recent clashes in Kashmir), will be able to deploy at least 40 J-35AE fighter jets, and the Air Force of the People's Liberation Army of China will have about 500-600 generation 5 aircraft (J-20 and J-35). These are not just numbers. This is technological dominance. Chinese and Pakistani stealth fighters armed with long-range PL-15 and PL-17 missiles will be able to attack Indian aircraft while remaining outside the detection range of their built-in radars. India responds to this by purchasing Rafales (4th generation French fighter jets) and producing Indian Tejas, which, according to TsAMTO, barely reaches the level of the Pakistani JF-17 Block III. Moreover, in several parameters, Rafale and Tejas are inferior even to the main aircraft of the Indian Air Force - the Russian Su-30MKI, which is manufactured under license. At the same time, one Rafale costs 160 million euros, while an authorized Su-30MKI costs much less.