A major memorandum of understanding (MoU) between France’s Safran Aircraft Engines and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) could change the strategic balance of India’s aerospace and defense sectors.
The agreement, centered on the co-development and manufacturing of military engines in India, marks a basic change in India’s quest for defense self-sufficiency, and its main goal to become a worldwide aerospace leader goes beyond a simple corporate handshake.
India has historically bought weapons from the United States, Russia, France, and other countries to outfit both home and foreign platforms.
The MiG series demonstrated a clear trend of foreign invention combined with domestic integration by using Russia’s Klimov engines and the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), while relying on General Electric’s F404.
But the Safran-HAL Memorandum of Understanding is rewriting the story. HAL seeks to engineer engines, not only assemble them.
The deal lays the groundwork for the assembly of the Safran M88 engine, which now drives France’s Rafale aircraft, and the manufacturing of necessary parts in India.
The main focus of the cooperation will be on the development of high-thrust engines (110 kN and above) to drive the next aircraft, including India’s stealth fifth-generation fighter, Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
This cooperation represents an important departure from past practices: India is now working to develop foreign technology cooperatively, not only absorbing it.
Safran-HAL memorandum
The timing of the Safran-HAL memorandum of understanding is deliberate. It directly relates to the approval of the AMCA Program Execution Model—a fresh industrial framework encouraging cooperation between the public and private sectors in important defense projects by the Indian government.
This execution model serves a purpose beyond being merely a bureaucratic rebranding project. Previously underprivileged in fighter jet production, the private sector now has the chance to assert itself in an industry traditionally dominated by public giants like HAL and DRDO.
That works well. Now integral to aircraft subassembly, radar systems, and structural components are Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), and Adani Defence. Safran’s participation is enabling engines, among other thorough capabilities in design, development, and manufacturing.
Kaveri engine
India’s main weakness in aircraft development has been its inability to produce a reliable jet engine. Initiated in the 1980s, the Kaveri engine is still under constant development with scant signs of operational readiness.
While France’s Safran has driven several generations of Mirage and Rafale aircraft, the U.S. used the Pratt & Whitney F135 for the F-35 Lightning II.
A lack of self-sufficiency in engines has compromised India’s credibility as a defense exporter, as well as its autonomy.
This illustrates the importance of Safran’s involvement. The M88 engine is a combat-tested one. Learning to build the M88 engine gives HAL a practical means to create its own strong engines, which could help solve the Kaveri problem and result in a native engine for the AMCA.
For decades, Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) exclusively oversaw India’s defense production. Budget overruns, missed deadlines, and inefficiencies hindered the performance of HAL and DRDO, despite their significant contributions.
One classic case study comes from the Tejas LCA effort. Starting in the 1980s, the effort aimed to replace the aging MiG-21 fleet with a domestically built lightweight fighter.
40 Tejas Mark 1 aircraft by 2025
HAL had only produced 36 of the 40 Tejas Mark 1 aircraft by 2025, while the upgraded Mark 1A suffered delays resulting from supply chain issues and reliance on GE engines.
After identifying the obstacles, the government initiated structural changes. The government asked private companies to assume responsibility and enhance their effectiveness.
The C295 transport aircraft facility of TASL in Vadodara, along with its composite construction, showcases the outputs of this approach.
The cooperation between Adani Defence and DRDO shows growing faith in non-governmental entities to supply strategic equipment.
These developments are necessary for creating a dynamic, competitive, and creative aerospace ecosystem; they go beyond simple capacity increase.
The Tejas fighter is a sobering reminder of what not to do, even with its agile qualities and simplified architecture. The development process has had delays. The Tejas warrior mostly depends on foreign engines. The manufacturing capacity is limited.
The fundamental problem is what? HAL depends on a disjointed supply chain and antiquated manufacturing technologies. Private partners are beginning to address some of these issues; however, comprehensive reform is still necessary.
This situation has a solution in the Safran-HAL memorandum of agreement. If HAL successfully absorbs Safran’s best practices in engine assembly and lifecycle management, it will then be able to positively influence other initiatives, including Tejas Mark 1A and Mark 2.
Indeed, Safran’s engineering knowledge gained from NATO-standard aircraft development could offer the structure India needs to improve its capacity.
AMCA
By 2035, India’s most ambitious aerospace project—the AMCA—aims to have a fifth-generation stealth fighter operational.
Still, India’s goal for sophisticated aircraft goes beyond that point. India has to switch straight to sixth-generation capabilities since enemies like China are advancing with the J-20 and J-35.
The aim goes beyond just supercruise engines or materials absorbing radiation. This category includes directed-energy weapons, drone swarms, artificial intelligence-assisted mission systems, and possibly crewed operations. These are costly, modern technologies.
Success of the AMCA depends on propulsion. The AMCA will become useless without an indigenous high-thrust engine or, worse, dependent on outside vendors.
Single-crystal turbine blades, advanced cooling systems, and variable-cycle engines developed by Safran could be the key ingredients of this puzzle.
Should the French company pursue deep tech transfer, India could become adept in manufacturing not only AMCAV engines but also engines for upcoming hypersonic platforms.
The HAL-Safran cooperation covers geopolitical aspects rather than only industrial ones.
Russian systems
Among India’s strategic partners, France has grown to be one of the most consistent ones. Through India’s diversification from Russian systems and continuous transactional ties with the United States, the relationship has strengthened from the Mirage 2000s in the 1980s to Rafale jets in the 2010s.
India reduces possible geopolitical disruptions by increasing its cooperation with France—especially in important sectors like engine technology. Strategic autonomy is not optional but rather crucial in the ever-unstable Indo-Pacific area.
The engine agreement provides France with a long-term investment in India’s defense industry, thereby harmonizing the industrial and strategic interests of both countries for decades to come.
Although the Safran-HAL alliance appears to have significant potential, it faces numerous challenges in the future.
France is probably going to be cautious when it comes to technology transfer. Military engine technology is quite secret. India has to negotiate wisely to obtain not just blueprints but also the knowledge to absorb and progress them.
Conclusion
Is HAL capable of effectively assimilating the available Safran financial disclosures? A state-owned company has to improve its production techniques, change its organizational culture, and invest in human capital.
Engines are not autonomous systems; they are ecosystems. Electronics, sensors, and materials have to develop concurrently. While strategic long-term planning is essential, the ₹20,000 crore increase to India’s defense R&D budget represents merely a first step.
Discipline of Execution: We cannot go back to teach Tejas’s lessons again. We have to forcefully eliminate scope expansion, inter-agency conflicts, and delays.
Although it appears to be merely a bilateral agreement, the Safran-HAL Memorandum of Understanding serves as a strategic trigger.
It drives India’s self-sufficiency project. India raises the importance of the private sector in aircraft production. It addresses engine-dependent vulnerability.
It lays the foundation for future systems, including sixth-generation aircraft and the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
If done right, it could transform India from a defense importer to a design-and-export powerhouse. Now operational on runways in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America, fighter planes fitted with engines made in India are more than just a dream.
References
- Safran and HAL Sign MoU for Jet Engine Development in India – Janes
- HAL and Safran to Jointly Develop Fighter Jet Engines – Economic Times
- India’s AMCA Fighter Jet Project Explained – The Hindu
- India’s Kaveri Engine Project: What Went Wrong – IDRW.org
- HAL’s Tejas Jet: Progress and Delays—The Print
- Safran M88 Engine Technical Overview – Safran Group
- India-France Defence Ties Strengthen with Engine Deal – ORF Online
- Tata Advanced Systems: Private Sector in Indian Defence – Tata.com
- Defence Acquisition Reforms in India – PIB
- India’s Defence R&D Budget Allocation 2024-25 – Defence News Today
