Nihat wrote:Then what does one suppose GoI should do , we can't build everything in-house and that too in a short time frame with top-notch quality.
Good point Nihat!! Let us analyze it. What happened in the 90s after the collapse of the Soviet Union - spares were unavailable leading to purchases of spares from wherever possible and at whatever price charged. Result - decreased availability of all Soviet equipment. For the IAF - it led to increased loss of aircraft and sadly several pilots. What would you say about national security in this period? Did this embolden Pakistan about their chances in a Kargil type venture?
So then what did the import of all the Russian hardware acheive in the post-Soviet Union era?
The kind of threats India faces are unprecedented, as both Pak and China are nuke armed and TSP especially is increasingly representing a rabid dog with little fear of the inevitable death.
Are you advocating imports of conventional weapons to deter aggression from these nations? Conventional wisdom from the cold war indicates maintaining a nookiller deterrence (mutually assured destruction/deterrence). So your suggestion may not work? India needs to work at the Agnis to put up a convincing deterrent force. That will keep the Chinese and Pakistan in check.
We must increase purchase of local weapons - Akash, LCA, Arjuns, INSAS, Pinaka etc and build the SFC into a robust, visible strategic deterrent. Imports like the MRCA may not be necessary for that purpose.
Eurofighter's message seems to be a combination of Saab's and Boeing's offers, and they might very well be correct on lifecycle costs .. the only problem is you're dealing with four foreign offices / bureaucracies instead of one (it may still be easier than dealing with the Amreekans tho! 
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