India To Get 5th-Gen Stealth Fighter Jet As Rajnath Singh Approves AMCA Project

The Aeronautical Development Agency will lead the AMCA programme's execution with industry partners. Singh's nod marks a pivotal phase in the development of a next-generation fighter jet built entirely in India.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved AMCA programme execution model.

Source : X@SpokespersonMoD

In a major push towards enhancing India’s indigenous defence capabilities, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday approved the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model. The move is aimed at improving India’s indigenous defence capabilities and fostering a robust domestic aerospace industrial ecosystem.

The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) will lead the programme's execution in collaboration with industry partners. This move marks a pivotal phase in the development of a next-generation fighter jet designed and built entirely in India.

The project, which will be undertaken by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in March 2024.

"The Execution Model approach provides equal opportunities to both private and public sectors on competitive basis. They can bid either independently or as joint venture or as consortia. The entity/bidder should be an Indian company compliant with the laws and regulations of the country," a statement by the Ministry of Defence read.

In a major push for #AatmanirbharBharat in defence, Raksha Mantri Shri @rajnathsingh has approved the Execution Model for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (#AMCA) programme. The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) will lead the project in partnership with Indian industry.… pic.twitter.com/CpBNGzkKcA

— Ministry of Defence, Government of India (@SpokespersonMoD) May 27, 2025

Singh's approval is a critical step towards harnessing India's indigenous expertise, capability, and capacity, which would now be utilised to develop the AMCA prototype — a major milestone towards Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) in the aerospace sector.

"ADA will shortly issue an Expression of Interest (EoI) for the AMCA Development Phase," the statement further noted.

According to a report by the Firstpost, a prototype could be rolled out within three years of the approval, with the first flight to be taken in a year after that. Notably, the MoD did not give any timeline in its latest press release.