New Delhi, June 5: Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed readiness to involve India in development and production of 5th Generation fighter plane Su-57, repeating a several-year-old offer which had not elicited a positive response from New Delhi.
The Su-57, the latest version of Sukhoi series of fighter planes produced by Russia, comes with enhanced stealth capabilities and most modern accessories.
During an interaction with journalists, Putin recalled that Russia had previously offered India the opportunity to develop the Su-57 fighter jet jointly.
It was around 2018 and was then known as the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) project.
“At one point, we proposed to our Indian friends to work together on this technology. But back then, our Indian friends said, ‘Go ahead on your own, and then we will see — maybe we’ll join’,” the Russian President said.
“The aircraft could have been our joint project. We built it independently, but we are ready to work with India in this field,” he added.
“We are ready to supply India with this aircraft, to keep developing it. We don’t have any issues or limitations. The same goes for air defence systems,” Putin said.
The timing of the offer is significant as the Indian Air Force (IAF) does not have any 5th-generation fighter and there are reports of Pakistan soon going to acquire China’s Shenyang J-35AE stealth fighters has raised concerns.
Su-57 Fighter Plane
Su-57, a multi-role combat aircraft, is the latest version of the Sukhoi fighter plane series, offering high manoeuvrability, stealth capabilities, and modern avionics.
The Su-57 is placed alongside China’s J-35 and America’s F-35, as part of a small group of 5th-generation fighters in service presently.
Why India did not show interest
India has been showing interest in jointly developing 5th Generation Fighter Aircraft with Russia for nearly one-and-a-half decade.
Joint development and production of Su-57 was under consideration.
However, later there was a rethink as the IAF reportedly concluded that the aircraft did not fully meet its operational requirements.
Several reports at that time claimed that the IAF was not satisfied with its stealth characteristics.
There were also disagreements over technology transfer.
