The first batch of Rafale jets will arrive in India from France on Wednesday, July 29. They will halt at UAE and join the Indian Air Force fleet in Ambala, Haryana. Air-to-air refueling will be done. Not to mention, fighter jets will cover a distance of nearly 7000km. French aviation firm Dassault was in charge of building jets. Today, they took off from Merignac airbase in Bordeaux, Southern France.
This is the first batch of a total 36 planes bought by India from France. This was an inter-governmental deal ofRs 59,000-crore done earlier in 2016. Twelve IAF pilots and engineering crew members are fully trained on the Rafale fighter jets. 30 will be fighter jets and six will be trainer jets.The trainer jet will be a twin-seater. And,they will have almost all the features of the fighter jets.
Specialties
These are capable of carrying highly effective weapons including the Meteor air-to-air missile and Scalp cruise missile. The Rafale jets come with specific modifications. This includes Israeli helmet-mounted displays, radar warning receivers, low-band jammers, 10-hour flight data recording, infra-red search, and tracking systems among others.
The second squadron of Rafale is to be stationed at Hasimara base in West Bengal. The IAF altogether spent around Rs 400 crore to develop the required infrastructure. This includes but not limited to shelters, hangers, and maintenance facilities at the two bases.
Jawed Ashraf, the Indian ambassador to France, congratulated the Indian pilots before they took off from France. The hand over event took part in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at Dassault Aviation in October last year.
Furthermore, Rafale jets can add strategic depth and strength to India’s air combat capabilities. Completion of delivery is expected by the end of 2021.
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