Embraer and Lockheed Martin Vie for India’s $10.5 Billion Transport Deal

India’s long-running search for a new medium transport aircraft has narrowed to a contest between Embraer’s C-390 Millennium and Lockheed Martin’s C-130J-30 Super Hercules. Defense News reported on 7 October 2026 that the programme is worth about $10.5 billion for 60 aircraft that will replace the Indian Air Force’s Soviet-era Antonov An-32 fleet.

The requirement

The aircraft must operate in high-altitude regions along India’s Himalayan borders and from temporary or unpaved airstrips. Their roles include troop transport, cargo delivery, disaster relief and humanitarian missions. The programme calls for at least 40 per cent domestic content, which is why both bidders have attached themselves to Indian industrial partners.

Bids are due in early December, after which the technical evaluation phase begins. Other reports of the programme have cited larger quantities, so the final number of aircraft may vary as requirements are settled.

Embraer and Mahindra

Embraer is working with Mahindra Defence. On 1 October the two companies announced that Nagpur, in Maharashtra, is their chosen location for a final assembly line for the C-390 if they win. The Maharashtra government has already allocated land.

The Defence Post notes that the C-390 can carry up to 26 metric tons and operates from unprepared runways. The partners say they would build up systems integration, manufacturing engineering and local supply-chain capability, and they are also studying whether India could serve as a regional maintenance hub for other C-390 operators. Embraer already has about 50 aircraft in India across commercial, business and defence roles.

The Nagpur plan builds on a strategic cooperation agreement signed in October 2025 and an earlier memorandum from February 2024. The facility depends on India selecting the aircraft.

Lockheed Martin and Tata

Lockheed Martin is offering the C-130J-30 Block 8.1.2 with Tata Advanced Systems. Its proposal would build 12 aircraft in the United States and 48 in India. Tata already manufactures C-130J components locally, including tail assemblies, and that existing work is a central part of Lockheed’s argument.

What separates the two

The C-130J is the established choice, with a large global fleet and a type that is already familiar to the Indian Air Force. The C-390 is a newer jet-powered design, and Embraer is pitching it as a modern alternative that can be built in India from the outset.

The decision will turn on cost, industrial commitment and delivery schedule as much as on performance, and the 40 per cent local-content rule gives the winner a long-term production role. Defense News describes the contest as a two-way race. The next test is the December bid submission, after which the technical evaluation will show how closely each offer matches the Himalayan operating requirement.