Defense

India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft programme is showing increasingly visible signs of transition from design engineering towards prototype manufacturing. Recent procurement activity by the Aeronautical Development Agency includes ultra-high-strength AerMet 100 aerospace steel, specialised composite lay-up tooling and a major industrial tender for development of the AMCA itself. Together, these developments point to the manufacturing ecosystem for India’s fifth-generation fighter beginning to take physical shape.

The Indian Navy is steadily expanding deployment of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile across its frontline surface fleet, with recent reports indicating that the service is working towards ensuring widespread BrahMos availability aboard its principal destroyers, frigates and missile combatants by around 2030. While the Navy has not publicly announced a formal fleet-wide 2030 deadline, official Ministry of Defence decisions confirm a major programme to expand the missile across both existing and future warships.

The Indian Navy is preparing the groundwork for a new generation of large indigenous guided-missile destroyers that would follow the Project 15B Visakhapatnam class. Often referred to in defence reporting as “Project 18”, the programme remains at the planning stage, but official statements from Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited indicate an initial requirement for four ships and a potential programme value in the ₹70,000–80,000 crore range.

Balu Forge Industries Limited (BFIL) has secured its first commercial purchase order for advanced 155mm Extended Range Full Bore Base Bleed and Boat Tail artillery shells, marking another step in the expansion of India’s private-sector large-calibre ammunition manufacturing base. The initial order covers a pilot supply of 10,000 units, after which deliveries are expected to continue on a monthly basis.