This deal between Russia and India made quite a splash—140 Su-57E fighter jets. As soon as that number was announced, the entire military community was in an uproar. Putin had barely returned from New Delhi before making it official, moving faster than anyone could have expected.

India is clearly in a hurry. The Air Force has shrunk from 39 squadrons to 29, and with the mass retirement of decades-old MiG-21s, the gap in combat capability is glaringly obvious. According to their own strategic planning, they need at least 42-43 squadrons to maintain regional superiority, so they’re scrambling to fill the void.

They had been eyeing the F-35A for a while, but the Americans wouldn’t budge—sure, you can buy the planes, but as for the technology? Not a chance. India is fed up with this “only selling the finished product, not the recipe” approach.

This time, Russia is being much more open: they’ll deliver 40 jets immediately to address the urgent need, and the remaining 100 will be assembled in India at a new production line in Nashik. Even more remarkable, Russia is willing to transfer core technologies like stealth coatings and active phased array radar, and they’re even putting the source code for the onboard systems on the table. In the past, such an offer would have been unthinkable, but now it’s being used as a bargaining chip.

Local production will also drive down the unit cost, whichever way you look at it, it’s a good deal for India.

But Russia isn’t running a charity. Over the past four years, their military exports have been cut in half. Domestically, the Su-57 has only received 76 orders, and funding for next-generation fighters is running dangerously low. With this 140-jet contract, not only can they recoup losses, but they can also use India as a “showroom”—Algeria has already shown interest, and more buyers could be lining up.

At the end of the day, this deal is a classic case of mutual benefit: India fills its combat capability gap and gets access to technology, while Russia earns money and stabilizes its defense export base. But if all 140 jets are actually delivered, the balance of power over South Asia could be reshuffled. Where things go from here? Let’s see how the delivery schedule unfolds.