No Decision Yet on Su-57, India Bets on AI Networks to Offset Stealth Gap

India has not taken any decision on acquiring the Russian Sukhoi-57 stealth fighter, Defence Secretary R K Singh said, even as the country confronts a widening gap with China in fifth-generation air power.

Speaking at a defence summit, Singh said the government had not yet made up its mind on inducting a fifth-generation fighter aircraft from global sources. "As of now, our fifth-generation fighter aircraft programme is AMCA. But we'll see where it goes," he said.

The remarks came in the presence of Russia's Ambassador to India, Denis Alipov. Moscow has been pressing New Delhi to buy the Su-57, which was showcased at Aero India in February 2025, and has offered licensed production in India with deep technology transfer.

China is believed to operate roughly 500 radar-evading J-20 and J-35 jets, while India has none in service. The indigenous Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) is close to a decade away from initial induction, assuming it clears integration and flight trials. Singh said the first AMCA prototype is expected to roll out in September 2028.

With stealth aircraft still out of reach, Singh pointed to India's sensor networks as a force multiplier. The Indian Air Force's Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) links radars, sensors, air defence units and command centres nationwide, fusing their data into a single real-time picture of the airspace so commanders can detect threats and direct fighters and air defence weapons quickly.

He said an artificial intelligence layer could be added to this network, which is also being combined with the Army's network and the country's air defence network, to improve the performance of 4.5-generation fighters such as the Tejas.

"It can't have the stealth features that these two aircraft have, but in a lot of other ways, in terms of evasion and target acquisition, a good network with a good AI layer can do a lot of those things," Singh said, adding that India would have to examine all such technological solutions while facing the gap.

For now, New Delhi appears to be betting that networks, sensors and software can buy time until the AMCA arrives. The calculation carries risk: Pakistan has signed an initial agreement to acquire Chinese J-35 stealth fighters, and China is already flight-testing its next-generation J-36.

Moscow's Su-57 offer remains on the table, but the pace of the AMCA programme and the ability of an AI-enabled network to compensate for missing stealth will shape India's options.