Hello defence lovers! Recently some Media houses highlighted the possibility that America might offer its fight generation fighter technology to India to counter the growing Chinese threat in the Indo-Pacific region. In this article, we will discuss the possibility that the US would offer its fight-generation F-35 to India and a hypothetical scenario discussing how IAF could have operated the F-35.
Introduction to F-35
Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is a single-seat, multirole stealth fighter that was initially developed to replace the F-16, F-15, A-10 and F-18 from the service of the American and other NATO forces. The F-35 project is one of the most expensive projects. The estimated cost of replacing all the existing fighters in USAF, US Navy and US marine corp with F-35 goes beyond $1.7 trillion.
The per unit cost of the F-35 is also very high compared to any other fighter jet on the planet. An F-35A roughly costs over $110 million and an F-35B cost over $135 million. Note that this is only the barebone cost for the aircraft and does not include weapon packages and ground support facilities.
F-35 for India?
After the US government gave India CAATSA waiver for purchasing the Russsian S-400 Triumph air defence systems, experts believe that there is a slight possibility that Lockheed Martin can offer its latest fight F-35 instead of F-21 keeping the growing defence ties between the two countries in mind.
Right now China and its expanding forces are the biggest concern for the US. India is the only player in the region that is capable of balancing power in the region. The Taiwan invasion threat is an added concern for the US. Hence the American lawmakers are somewhat not hesitating in keeping Indian armed forces well equipped with the latest American technologies.
However, had Indian armed forces not operated the S-400 system, the US would have definitely offered the F-35 in MMRCA 2.0 by now. As we have seen in the case of Turkey, the US has serious concerns with the simultaneous operation of the Russian S-400 and its F-35. Americans are afraid that operating these two systems together will result in S-400โs adaptation to recognising f-35โs digital signature and making them more effective against American 5th generation fighters. The sensitive data might also end up in Russian hands as support from the original equipment manufacturer is required for the smooth operation of the systems.
What If The Indian Airforce Operated F-35?
Let us assume a hypothetical scenario where India has not purchased the Russian S-400 air defence systems. In that case, let us assume that the US would have offered the F-35. In that Scenario too, it would have been highly unlikely that the IAF would have considered the import of these fifth-generation fighters. Let us understand why.
As we have discussed earlier, a single F-35A costs over $110 million. This cost is somewhere comparable to the cost of the Dassault rafale that IAF has inducted recently. In the case of Rafale, we have seen that the weapon package and ground support infrastructure cost is also high and comparable to the procurement cost of the fighter jets themselves. F-35 is one of the costliest jets to operate. A flight hour costs over $30000 which is more than twice the cost of a Dassault Rafale (the most advanced fighter in IAFโs fleet). Moreover, the maintenance is also very expensive compared to 4.5 generation fighters. The stealth coating on the f-35 requires specialized hangers where temperature and humidity can be controlled. It has been observed that the F-35s used by US Navy are facing severe rusting issues and damage to the radar absorbent material coating due to rough sea conditions. In tropical humid environments like in India, the fighters will have similar problems.
Taking about F-35โs key highlight โ stealth is not very useful from the IAFโs point of view. Definitely, a stealthy aircraft would boost IAFโs capabilities but right now quantity is a greater priority over quality. In stealthy conditions, the weapons and fuel are limited as the external hardpoints increase radar signature. Thus no weapons can be carried on the external hardpoints and no fuel in drop tanks. Right now our enemies also lack proper stealth capabilities but have significant numbers of non-stealthy yet advanced fighters. In such a scenario, the IAF would have preferred non-stealthy yet advanced fighters which are cheaper to procure and operate to maintain the declining squadron strength. Having a single squadron of F-35s would have been enough for IAFโs requirements. The F-35 is like a sports car which can be driven on weekends but not every day. It cannot become the workhorse of any air force due to its exorbitant operating cost. Thatโs why even USAF and US Navy are going for new F-15ex and F-18 super hornet block-III instead of F-35s.
Now let us keep the above points aside for a moment. Even if IAF had purchased F-35s, those fighters would have come with a lot of terms and conditions. Those fighters just could not be deployed anywhere anytime due to these terms and conditions. Moreover, indigenous weapon integration would have been another problem with any American fighter jet.
Despite all the limitations that the operations of the F-35 have, we have to agree that this fighter would have provided capabilities to the IAF which are unmatched in the Indian Subcontinent. Neither of Indiaโs adversaries has anything to counter a fighter like the F-35. The technological superiority of this platform is unmatchable for adversaries. The sensors onboard the fighter is perhaps the best in the world. Looking at the stealth, it is far superior compared to the Chinese J-20 and J-35. The network-centric warfare capabilities of the aircraft are superior to any other platform in the IAFโs inventory. It will also have seamless communication with other American platforms such as P-8I.
Conclusion
From the above discussion we can conclude that even if the US had offered the F-35 to India, chances are very less that IAF would have gone for it. F-35 would have been a financial burden on the countryโs economy in a situation where the government has a limited defence budget and yet it has to modernise all three forces.
Importing a fifth-generation fighter would have negatively affected the development of indigenous fifth-generation fighters like AMCA. Instead of purchasing the F-35s, seeking technical assistance from the US for projects like AMCA and jet engine technology would make greater sense. We have to reduce our dependence on imports and IAF has taken the right step by supporting indigenous projects the AMCA and Tejas. If we aspire to become a Superpower, we cannot be dependent on other countries for critical technologies like stealth fighters.
