Earlier this year, India's government approved country's fifth-generation fighter jet AMCA program. The research and development will be carried out by the state owned organizations like ADA, DRDO, and HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project of the Indian Air Force (IAF). This will be India’s own indigenous F-35 Lightning II and will bring India in the league of nations, which have 5th Gen aircrafts like United States, Russia, China etc. Currently, the 5th generation planes operable are F-22, F-35, J-20, Su-57.
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| HAL AMCA Model |
HAL AMCA vs F-35 vs FGFA
In some aspects, AMCA is better than Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II like in maneuverability and BVR combat. AMCA can be fitted with Meteor missile or its future variants, which is superior to F-35 BVR missiles.
In order to promote “Make in India”, Indian government cancelled Indo-Russian joint venture FGFA project and went with AMCA project. In response, on 7 July 2017, the Pakistan Air Force announced its Project Azm to develop fifth-generation fighter (PAC PF-X) and Stealth MALE UAVs.
In 2010, the MCA program was renamed as AMCA program under the flagship of ADA. Although MCA was envisioned as a 15-tonne class fighter, the IAF's Air Staff requirements (ASR) for the AMCA, issued in April 2010 placed the now rechristened aircraft in the 25-tonne category. In October 2010, the Government of India allocated ₹100 crore to prepare feasibility studies in 18 months. In 2013, a review committee was formed, which on the feasibility study report recommended initiating the next phase of the program.
A CAD model of the aircraft was shown at Aero India 2019. The first flight is expected to be by 2025 and serial production might begin by 2030. The AMCA is currently the only fifth generation fighter under development in India. The aircraft, along with its naval variant, is intended to provide the bulk of the manned tactical airpower of the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy over the coming decades. AMCA would be the third supersonic jet of Indian origin after the HAL Marut and HAL Tejas.
AMCA is a single seat, twin engine, all weather swing role, fifth generation fighter plane. The aircraft features a tricycle landing gear configuration. The weapons bay is placed on the underside of the fuselage between the nose and main landing gear. The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) is going to enter a crucial phase with the detailed data-generation process for making prototypes set to begin in the second half of this year.
According to a statement earlier this year by RKS Bhaduaria, the commander of the Indian Air Force, the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) of India has set an aggressive goal for the plan. By 2030, domestic stealth aircraft should be in production. In an interview with the Hindustan Times in February this year, Bhaduaria did not rule out the possibility of stealth fighters equipped with directed energy weapons, including the integration of sixth-generation technology (like ASAT weapons) and excellent anti-missile systems. The 6th generation fighters like Mig-41 will have ASAT weapons and its missiles and lasers can shoot down satellites.
The AMCA will have supersonic, stealth, multirole features of the fifth generation jets, but "a lot of things can change in regards to sensors, weapons, overall range, and aircraft capabilities," he said. As of 2032, the Indian Air Force plans to have about 120 all weather stealth aircrafts in its fleet, and the AMCA will be ready by then. Stealth will constitute an indispensable feature of air combat, and the dominance of electromagnetic warfare will play a central role in the future wars. AMCA along with HAL Tejas and Sukhoi Su-30 and Rafale will be the main thrust of the IAF’s strike package.
With the assistance of artificial intelligence-based systems, AMCA will be equipped with multi-sensor data fusion (MSDF) and 3D audio to enhance the understanding of the its environment, which is a feature of the 5th generation jets. This domestic multi-role fifth-generation fighter will also use an advanced cockpit, equipped with a large area display (LAD), touch screen and 3D display to provide a good user interface. In addition, AMCA will be equipped with a quadruple digital flight control system, a side stick controller with HOTAS configuration and a unified throttle for a smooth flight experience.
Although a number of global defense companies have approached and cooperated with India to build engines, it is said that the country is considering cooperation with France's Dassault, and Dassault is said to have also provided technology transfer. So, India may sign an MOU with France related to the technologies required to manufacture high-thrust engines and in future AMCA will have indigenous engines.
AMCA AESA Radar
Uttam is a solid state GaAs based Active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar under development by Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), a laboratory of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). It is a low probability of intercept radar intended to be equipped with HAL Tejas Mark 1A, HAL Tejas Mark 2 and HAL Twin Engine Deck Based Fighter (TEDBF) aircraft with plans to implement a larger and more powerful variant on-board India's 5th Generation fighter aircraft HAL AMCA.
It is a liquid cooled AESA radar featuring quad band modules that can be stacked to form a larger unit. This allows the manufacturer to scale the radar to be used in larger aircraft. There are plan afoot to create a larger scalable design to be used in India's 5th Generation fighter aircraft HAL AMCA.
The radar development began in 2012 and its full-scale model was displayed at the Aero India 2017. A fully functional AESA radar prototype was unveiled at Aero India 2019, the radar prototype was mounted inside the glass nose of a Tejas prototype. Three units are in various phases of testing, as of 2021. Uttam AESA radar has completed 230 hours of airborne testing onboard two Tejas fighter jets (LSP2 and LSP3) beside an executive jet; presumed to be DRDO's Dornier 228 "Nabhratna" used as a flying test bed by LRDE.[7] Once fully validated and certified, plan is to introduce the radar in later batches of Tejas Mark 1A aircraft. The Uttam radar will be used with DRDO's Unified Electronic Warfare suite.
During Aero India 2021, there was a licensing agreements for TOT from DRDO to HAL for manufacturing and integration of Uttam in Mark 1A variant of TejasIn order to promote “Make in India”, Indian government cancelled Indo-Russian joint venture FGFA project and went with AMCA project. In response, on 7 July 2017, the Pakistan Air Force announced its Project Azm to develop fifth-generation fighter (PAC PF-X) and Stealth MALE UAVs.
In 2010, the MCA program was renamed as AMCA program under the flagship of ADA. Although MCA was envisioned as a 15-tonne class fighter, the IAF's Air Staff requirements (ASR) for the AMCA, issued in April 2010 placed the now rechristened aircraft in the 25-tonne category. In October 2010, the Government of India allocated ₹100 crore to prepare feasibility studies in 18 months. In 2013, a review committee was formed, which on the feasibility study report recommended initiating the next phase of the program.
A CAD model of the aircraft was shown at Aero India 2019. The first flight is expected to be by 2025 and serial production might begin by 2030. The AMCA is currently the only fifth generation fighter under development in India. The aircraft, along with its naval variant, is intended to provide the bulk of the manned tactical airpower of the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy over the coming decades. AMCA would be the third supersonic jet of Indian origin after the HAL Marut and HAL Tejas.
AMCA is a single seat, twin engine, all weather swing role, fifth generation fighter plane. The aircraft features a tricycle landing gear configuration. The weapons bay is placed on the underside of the fuselage between the nose and main landing gear. The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) is going to enter a crucial phase with the detailed data-generation process for making prototypes set to begin in the second half of this year.
According to a statement earlier this year by RKS Bhaduaria, the commander of the Indian Air Force, the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) of India has set an aggressive goal for the plan. By 2030, domestic stealth aircraft should be in production. In an interview with the Hindustan Times in February this year, Bhaduaria did not rule out the possibility of stealth fighters equipped with directed energy weapons, including the integration of sixth-generation technology (like ASAT weapons) and excellent anti-missile systems. The 6th generation fighters like Mig-41 will have ASAT weapons and its missiles and lasers can shoot down satellites.
The AMCA will have supersonic, stealth, multirole features of the fifth generation jets, but "a lot of things can change in regards to sensors, weapons, overall range, and aircraft capabilities," he said. As of 2032, the Indian Air Force plans to have about 120 all weather stealth aircrafts in its fleet, and the AMCA will be ready by then. Stealth will constitute an indispensable feature of air combat, and the dominance of electromagnetic warfare will play a central role in the future wars. AMCA along with HAL Tejas and Sukhoi Su-30 and Rafale will be the main thrust of the IAF’s strike package.
With the assistance of artificial intelligence-based systems, AMCA will be equipped with multi-sensor data fusion (MSDF) and 3D audio to enhance the understanding of the its environment, which is a feature of the 5th generation jets. This domestic multi-role fifth-generation fighter will also use an advanced cockpit, equipped with a large area display (LAD), touch screen and 3D display to provide a good user interface. In addition, AMCA will be equipped with a quadruple digital flight control system, a side stick controller with HOTAS configuration and a unified throttle for a smooth flight experience.
AMCA Cost
The program is expected to be a public-private partnership. The design and development phase of the prototype will cost around ₹ 7,000-8,000 crores in a decade. The single unit of HAL AMCA will cost $80-90 million whereas the cost of a most advanced 5th generation fighter aircraft like F35, F22 and Rafale is around $90-150 million for each unit, although there are no criteria for technology transfer. If it is done then it may cost more than $150 million.
AMCA Engine
A GE 99 F414 jet engine will be selected to power the first two squadrons of the AMCA as the project is handled by the National Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA). The next two squadrons are slated to have local engines. Additionally, the 99 F414 GE was selected as the jet engine for the indigenous LCA Tejas (Mk-II). DRDO plans to build a separate unit to develop AMCA engines, due to technical challenges with the Kaveri engine. The scientists of the organization faced a difficult task, that is, to develop a brand-new engine to adapt to the fifth-generation fighter that can generate 110 kilograms of Newton (kN) thrust.
Although a number of global defense companies have approached and cooperated with India to build engines, it is said that the country is considering cooperation with France's Dassault, and Dassault is said to have also provided technology transfer. So, India may sign an MOU with France related to the technologies required to manufacture high-thrust engines and in future AMCA will have indigenous engines.
AMCA AESA Radar
Uttam is a solid state GaAs based Active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar under development by Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), a laboratory of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). It is a low probability of intercept radar intended to be equipped with HAL Tejas Mark 1A, HAL Tejas Mark 2 and HAL Twin Engine Deck Based Fighter (TEDBF) aircraft with plans to implement a larger and more powerful variant on-board India's 5th Generation fighter aircraft HAL AMCA. It is a liquid cooled AESA radar featuring quad band modules that can be stacked to form a larger unit. This allows the manufacturer to scale the radar to be used in larger aircraft. There are plan afoot to create a larger scalable design to be used in India's 5th Generation fighter aircraft HAL AMCA.
The radar development began in 2012 and its full-scale model was displayed at the Aero India 2017. A fully functional AESA radar prototype was unveiled at Aero India 2019, the radar prototype was mounted inside the glass nose of a Tejas prototype. Three units are in various phases of testing, as of 2021. Uttam AESA radar has completed 230 hours of airborne testing onboard two Tejas fighter jets (LSP2 and LSP3) beside an executive jet; presumed to be DRDO's Dornier 228 "Nabhratna" used as a flying test bed by LRDE.[7] Once fully validated and certified, plan is to introduce the radar in later batches of Tejas Mark 1A aircraft. The Uttam radar will be used with DRDO's Unified Electronic Warfare suite.
HAL AMCA Specifications:
Specifications can vary as the aircraft is still in development stage. All the informations are based on available non-official sources - approximate and preliminary.
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft
General characteristics:
Crew: One pilot
Length: 18 m (59 ft 1 in)
Height: 4.8 m (15 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 39.9 m2 (429 sq ft)
Empty weight: 11,000 kg (24,251 lb) (estimated)
Gross weight: 18,000 kg (39,683 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 25,000[73] kg (55,116 lb) (estimated)
Fuel capacity: 6,500kg
Powerplant: 2 × Modified GE F414 (initial production)[74] afterburning turbofan
Powerplant: 2 × Undecided[75] afterburning turbofan
Performance:
Maximum speed: Mach 2.15+
Supercruise: Mach 1.82 (planned)
Range: 3,240 km (2,010 mi, 1,750 nmi)
Combat range: 1,620 km (1,010 mi, 870 nmi)
Ferry range: 5,324 km (3,308 mi, 2,875 nmi)
Service ceiling: 20,000 m (65,000 ft)
Armament:
Internal weapons bay.
Guns: 23 mm GSh-23 cannon
Hardpoints: 14 (in non stealth version) with a capacity of around 9 tons (expected),with provisions to carry combinations of:
Rockets: S-8 rocket pods (expected)
Air to air missiles
Astra IR
Astra Mark 1
Astra Mark 2
Astra Mark 3
Air to ground missiles
BrahMos NG
SANT
Rudram-1
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