These assertions also come amid reports that the Pakistan Air Force would procure stealth jets from China.
“The IAF’s procurement priorities are not driven by the need to match acquisitions by other nations. However, stealth is already a reality in our neighbourhood, and the IAF requires its own radar-evading platforms, as well as counter-stealth capabilities, in line with its own requirements,” the source said.
“With the indigenous advanced medium combat aircraft (AMCA) still in its early phase, the Su-57 remains the only viable option for bringing stealth capabilities to the IAF within a shorter timeframe. Such an acquisition, if it materialises, would not come at the cost of indigenous programmes, which would continue in parallel and remain a strategic imperative,” they added.
While the IAF has not yet moved a procurement case for the Russian twin-engine, stealth-capable multirole fighter, media reports have said that Russia is willing to offer the jet to India and facilitate its local manufacturing.
The IAF is at a critical juncture due to delayed inductions. The retirement of the last two MiG-21 Bison squadrons last September reduced its combat strength to 29 active fighter squadrons — the lowest in 60 years — against a sanctioned strength of 42. The Jaguar, MiG-29 and Mirage-2000 fleets are also set to begin phasing out by the end of the decade, although some upgraded variants may have to remain in service beyond that period.
“The IAF must not only bridge the immediate deficit of 13 squadrons to reach its sanctioned strength of 42, but also plan for an additional 10 squadrons over the next 10–15 years to replace these aircraft,” Air Vice Marshal Anil Golani (retired), director-general, Centre for Aerospace Power and Strategic Studies, said.
The sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons may also need to be revisited in the future, with perhaps 55 to 60 squadrons — including remotely piloted strike aircraft — being more appropriate for dealing with a two-front scenario.
Noting that India currently fields 29 squadrons, against Pakistan’s 24 and China’s 60-plus, Golani said, “We need both quality and quantity in 4.5-generation fighters.”
While emphasising that the push towards indigenous airpower solutions was a strategic imperative, he added that the IAF’s shortfall could not be addressed through the indigenous route alone, and that the acquisition of 114 additional Rafale jets would significantly help bridge the gap.
The source cited earlier said the Rafale acquisition would not come at the expense of the indigenous Tejas Mark-1A and Mark-2 programmes.
In February, the Defence Acquisition Council, the apex decision-making body of the Ministry of Defence, accorded the "acceptance of necessity", the first step in government defence buying, for proposals from the three services estimated to be worth about Rs 3.6 trillion, including the purchase of 114 Rafale jets.
Earlier, a source had estimated the cost of the 114 aircraft at about Rs 2.70 trillion. Once the technical and commercial negotiations are completed, the proposal will be taken up for final approval by the Cabinet Committee on Security, chaired by the Prime Minister. The majority of the aircraft are to be manufactured in India, with only the initial units being procured from France in fly-away condition. Deliveries of the first fly-away aircraft are expected to begin from 2030 onwards, assuming the agreement is signed by early 2027.
Following Operation Sindoor in May last year, Pakistan is reportedly seeking to address the gaps exposed in its military capabilities. Earlier this month, at least one Chinese media report claimed that Pakistan had signed what it described as an “initial collaborative agreement” for the acquisition of an unspecified number of Chinese Shenyang J-35 stealth combat aircraft, with the possibility of an initial batch being delivered by the end of 2026 itself. By late 2025, at least one international open-source estimate placed China’s fleet of Chengdu J-20 stealth jets at around 300 aircraft.
For its part, India is pursuing the AMCA programme, with the first flight of a stealth prototype expected by the end of 2028 or 2029 at the earliest. If all goes to plan, series production is expected to begin around 2035.
“Defending our aerospace with just a few expensive stealth fighters is not feasible. Because these jets carry their weapons in internal bays with limited space, they cannot deliver the same weight of action on target as, say, a Sukhoi Su-30MKI or Rafale equipped with cruise missiles on external hardpoints. A stealth jet compromises its radar-evading capability if it carries larger, more impactful weapons externally,” the source said, adding that both fifth- and 4.5-generation jets will have a role to play in the IAF for years to come.
Highlighting that air forces in major military powers such as the United States are also seeking to retain a backbone comprising 4.5-generation fighters, despite possessing fifth-generation stealth jets and moving towards even stealthier and more capable sixth-generation platforms, the source said the right mix of such aircraft was necessary for the IAF to continue fulfilling its mission.
“We need fifth-generation jets to operate in highly contested and heavily defended airspace. But if we want to carry out the kind of strikes seen during Operation Sindoor, where substantial damage was inflicted on runways, hangars and other military and terrorist facilities, we will still need 4.5-generation jets, and in numbers,” the source added.
 "A Russian Sukhoi Su-57 stealth fighter jet at the AeroIndia 2025 air show. Image credit: Russian Embassy in India (X)")