India Seeks to Join Development of French FCAS Fighter

India has begun official steps toward joining France’s Future Combat Air System (FCAS) sixth-generation fighter program.

Opex360 reported this, citing documents from India’s Ministry of Defence presented to a parliamentary defense committee.

India’s Ministry of Defence said it had begun work on joining the FCAS program, which is led by the French government.

India had previously considered participating in one of two European sixth-generation fighter programs — the French FCAS or the British-Italian-Japanese Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).

In March 2026, Indian Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Anil Chauhan said the country intended to join one of the two consortia and begin studying the prospects for developing a sixth-generation fighter.

The situation changed after Franco-German cooperation on the New Generation Fighter (NGF), which was to become the centerpiece of the original FCAS architecture, came to an end.

In June 2026, France and Germany agreed to end the joint project after prolonged disagreements over its implementation.

Following this, France began considering the involvement of new partners.

Dassault Aviation CEO Éric Trappier said in July that he supported expanding international cooperation on the development of a sixth-generation fighter, including participation by non-European countries.

For India, participation in the French project could provide access to next-generation fighter technology and accelerate the development of its own combat aircraft.

The Indian Air Force and Navy seek to avoid falling behind China, which already operates the J-20 and J-35 fighters and is testing sixth-generation fighter prototypes.

India is also developing its own combat aircraft programs, including the fifth-generation AMCA fighter and the carrier-based TEDBF fighter. At the same time, participation in an international project could complement these programs and give the country access to emerging combat aviation technologies.

Recently, India’s defense minister said the country does not plan to purchase Russian Su-57E fighters and will instead focus on upgrading its existing Su-30MKI fleet.

Earlier, Militarnyi reported that Germany and Spain had decided to continue the sixth-generation fighter project without France. Under the new Team Gen 6 industrial partnership, Airbus plans to continue work on the German and Spanish components of the FCAS program.