Synopsis
- This shift is directly connected to the current discussions of a possible acquisition of 114 more Rafales by India and is indicative of an increased focus on the production of aerospace equipment within the country as opposed to blatant importation.
Source: IgMp Bulletin
The talks between India and France regarding the follow-on steps in procuring Rafale fighter jets have now gone far beyond the number of aircraft and have now entered the domain of long-term collaboration in the aerospace industrial realm. In the heart of this change lies Safran, which has expressed willingness to set up a local assembly line in India of the M88 engine that drives the Rafale. This shift is directly connected to the current discussions of a possible acquisition of 114 more Rafales by India and is indicative of an increased focus on the production of aerospace equipment within the country as opposed to blatant importation.
Safran’s top management has already clarified that India is not only perceived as a customer by the company, but also as a production ally. Establishing an M88 engine assembly line in the country will guarantee servicing the existing and future Rafale fleets, as well as see India develop into a larger purpose of developing a self-sufficient defence industrial base. Local assembly would enable quicker turnaround of engines, ease logistics, and develop a technical base of enhanced maintenance and overhaul capacity in India.
The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is likely to anchor the partnership as it already occupies the centre of the Indian military aviation environment. The dialogue between Safran and HAL has been underway on the M88 engine manufacturing program for years, permitted by the signing of a memorandum of understanding in 2021. The pact was aimed at determining the viability of building M88 engines in India and progressive localisation of major parts, which precondition the more tangible plans under discussion.
In addition to assembly, Safran has also emphasised that it plans to source its parts from Indian suppliers. Such a strategy will likely draw a broad spectrum of local companies, both state-owned and privately held, into the Rafale supply chain. In the long term, this may assist the Indian companies in gaining precision machining skills, improved materials, and subassemblies that are part of the aero engines, which is paramount to a country hoping to sharpen up on mastering high-performance jet engine technology.
The opportunity size is enormous. A 114-aircraft fleet of Rafale fighters would demand an initial quantity of more than 250 M88 engines, including spares and reserves. That may perhaps increase twofold throughout the lifetime of the fleet because engines go through a replacement cycle. The volumes like this give an excellent economic argument behind local assembly and partial manufacture, as it is not the end-game but a long-term commercial operation that will benefit decades of industrial operation.
In the case of India, this plan has been a good fit into its drive towards more strategic access to defence. Despite the fact that the Rafale fighter jet is a foreign-made system, the assembly of engines and other parts locally would be a big change compared to previously procured systems that have limited the industrial contribution. To Safran, its close associations with HAL and Indian suppliers enhance its future in one of the fastest-expanding defence aviation markets in the world.
The newly proposed M88 assembly line, as part of the ongoing negotiations on the Rafale fleet expansion, is a symbol of the changing nature of defence dealings between the French and Indian sides. Rather than aircraft deliveries alone, mutualized production, technology depth, and industrial development are also becoming the focal point of both parties, which can change the Indian military aviation environment in the long run beyond the Rafale acquisition.
