5 Rafales head to India in boost to its air power
FIRST OF 36 Fighter jets take off from France on 7,000km trip to the Ambala air base
NEWDELHI: Five Rafale fighter jets of the 36 ordered by the Indian Air Force (IAF) took off from Mérignac in France and will reach their home base in Ambala on July 29 after a stopover at the Al Dhafra airbase near Abu Dhabi — a move that will boost rapid deployment of the jets to upgrade India’s ageing air power amid tensions with neighbouring China and Pakistan.
The two-leg flight will involve the Rafales covering a distance of nearly 7,000km. The five fighters landed safely at Al Dhafra after a seven-hour flight from France on Monday evening.
“Real beauty and beast!” Indian ambassador to France Jawed Ashraf said while the planes were being flagged off in Bordeaux. “First five Rafale to India – swift, nimble, versatile, advanced and lethal,” he added.
“This also marks a new milestone in the strong and growing India-france defence cooperation,” the Indian Embassy said in a statement. The new fighters — the first imported jets to be inducted into the IAF in 23 years after the Russian Sukhoi-30 jets entered service in June 1997 — will significantly enhance the offensive capabilities of IAF, which has for long planned to update its fighter jet force.
The jets -- the first of the 36 Rafale jets purchased from French firm Dassault --- have been specially tailored for IAF.
India-specific enhancements on the Rafales include a helmetmounted sight, radar warning receivers, flight data recorders with storage for 10 hours of data, infrared search and track systems, jammers, cold engine start capability to operate from highaltitude bases, and towed decoys to ward off incoming missiles. The twin-engine jet is capable of carrying out a variety of missions – ground and sea attack, air defence and air superiority, reconnaissance and nuclear strike deterrence.