Yes, put lipstick on the fact 5th generation Chinese aircraft will actually be stealth whereas FGFA is aiming for VLO….

Great plan. LCA light fighters against J-20 should make you sleep better at night. And MKI in its current form is unsustainable at 350-400 fighters due to it’s high maintenance demands. You could maintain status quo MKI to maybe maintain around 300 and still push LCA, but again you have to keep budget available for 100 FGFA. I’m not so sure China won’t field 200+ J-20. It’s bad enough FGFA will be higher RCS, but to be outnumbered and supported with less communications will be suicide. China unlike India has already thrown up regional targeting satellites, demonstrated capabilities to deploy regular strategic spy satellites, and has begun work in AI augmented battlespace management. India is still talking about random stuff with little big picture details fleshed out in reality

So the US are ready to sell their latest fighter jet to India (f35) and transfer the production line of their most represented aircraft in number in their air force but, somehow, you came to the conclusion that the “US technology [that] requires significant clearance for export to India. ” on the Gripen would impair any potential sales…

Your reasoning encoded in old language:

If not Rafale then from j=1 to infinite writteln “Rafale”

…

You realize Lockmart isn’t exactly offering F-35 now, it’s talking around 2030. Lockmart wanted to sell them F-16 now, F-35B to Indian Navy later

Rafale at least gets them a counter-balance to J-20 of the PLAAF. F-16IN doesn’t necessarily get them there, at least without some sort of make-over to reduce RCS. Typhoon and Gripen both give Rafale a run for the money, as Flanker busters, but neither has near term stealth busting qualities. Gripen might, but the development is likely to depend on US technology and require significant clearance for export to India. If the US cannot sell F-16IN or Super Hornet, what makes anyone think they won’t play spoiler?

The thing is the AGILE wing in the F-2A program was not exactly bad or insignificant. It allowed for carrying two 600-gallon drop tanks AND the maximum load of any previous F-16 version. Although not as cute as the F-16XL wing, it carried loads of much larger weights on each station than other versions. Think about complete a2g missions with full bomb loads while keeping room for wingtip ASRAAM and outer AMRAAM combinations for self escort.

India could conceivably customize it to handle loads like four Kh-31’s. That would free up using Su-30MKI from doing a2g, retaining them for air superiority

F-16/AGILE was the pre-Mitsubishi F-2A large wing F-16. The F-2A retained the wing, but went with a new front section for their indigenous AESA radar. plus Japan had different standards for aircraft front windscreens. That is why the nose and canopy had to be redesigned for F-2A. The F-16 Block 60 derivative using the F-2A wing would be a nice platform from which to build an Indian specific F-16.

The AGILE wing was a reduced camber thickness

I’d have to say something is lost in translation between what each manufacturer seems to define as wingbox.