I was told by other posters that TEDBF is just on paper design. Nothing has come out of it. Now you are saying differently. Who am I to believe? If what you say is correct, then my original statement regarding TEDBF still stands and we would be better off going with TEDBF full speed, junk the MRFA, and move the AMCA into 6th generation design stage. If we truly need a 5th generation fighter as a stopgap measure and on short notice, the only available and feasible option would be the Su-57. US would not sell the F-35 to us as long as we have the S-400. They were willing to alienate a major US ally who have been a member of NATO for over 60 years just because it got S-400 system.
The Korean K-21 fighter is not as stealthy since the weapons stick out of the bottom bay so it can't be considered as a true 5th generation fighter only a 4+++ or 4.9 generation fighter.
If you want to go ahead with the AMCA as a 5th generation fighter, then we got no hope of catching up to the western powers when US with its NGAF program and UK/Japan with its Tempest program and not to mention France's next generation fighter program come out with a 6th generation fighter by the time AMCA rolls off the production line. Effectively IAF will always be one or 1.5 generation behind. And at that time, China would have totally caught up with the western powers as it already came out with its 5th generation fighter. China may not have a robust engine program but they are working on it full speed, coming up with one iteration after the next and give it enough time and money, they will perfect it after acquiring the necessary database of know how and know why.
Hold your horses. 6th gen jets are still in conceptual state . They will take decades to proliferate.
F22 first flew in 1997. Now we are 2022. After 25 years other than USA no one has 5th gen plane in decent numbers.
Russians are struggling with su57.
And if j20 is stealth with those huge canards then we need to invent new laws of physics.
Also j20 is utterly underpowered ( can't even supercruise) and have avionics a generation behind that of rafale. China won't catch up with west for 20-30 years still.
Applying similar timelines to 6th gen jets even of usa starts getting them by 2030 they will only proliferate world wide 30 years later.
European fcas is already delayed and won't enter service before 2050 and that is if not delayed anymore which germans are hellbent on doing . Tempest may come a bit faster but what exactly is 6th gen in it??
Besides Europeans haven't build any 5th gen jets on their own won't they face more delays challanges in jumping to 6th gen.
Now coming back to tedbf.
Yes it's not properly funded as of now. But then again reducing the number required of foreign jets from 57 to 36 is a clear signal that tedbf will go ahead. Navy might require 150+ jets for 3 carriers fleet in future so tedbf number will grow with time .
AMCA is more than enough for next 3 decades barring usa and Russia no one will have anything more advance then that and that includes chinese.
A real chinese stealth jet might only emerge by 2040 when they will be able to match avionics level of rafale F5 and can get designs without canards and have proper powerful engines to supercruise.
By the time we will have AMCA mk2 with similar characteristics.
And rest assured we will be working on 6tg gen concept once AMCA starts flying and mwf development is over . By 2028-2035 we will be designing that. Meanwhile we are already working in parallel to so called 6th gen concept with unmanned drones , drone swarm mothership concepts and loyal wingmans ( jaguar Max and cats program) are exactly what's others are defining as 6th gen.
So calm down and carry on.
