Key points:
- The second batch of three Rafale fighter jets of the Indian Air Force will arrive on Wednesday.
- On July 29, five Rafale 36 jets ordered by the IAF arrived at the Ambala airbase.
- 36 aircraft likely to join the fighting fleet of the air force by the end of the year.
- In September 2016, the jets were ordered from France under a government-to-government contract worth ₹59,000 crores.
The second batch of three Rafale fighter jets of the Indian Air Force will arrive straight from France at the Jamnagar airbase in Gujarat on Wednesday as the air force prepared to establish its first Rafale squadron at Ambala, officials acquainted with the announcements said on Tuesday.
First Batch of Rafale on July 29:
On July 29, after a stop at the Al Dhafra airbase near Abu Dhabi, the first batch of five Rafale 36 jets ordered by the IAF arrived at the Ambala airbase, even though a proper induction ceremony did take place later on September 10.
On their route, the three jets will not have a stopover. They will be refuelled during the voyage by French and Indian tankers. After a one-day interval at Jamnagar, the jets are scheduled to hit Ambala, “the officials said.
As per the HT report on October 16:
As reported by the Hindustan Times on October 16, an Indian Air Force team, headed by a two-star officer, was in France last month to review the progress of the Rafale project ahead of the arrival of the second batch of fighters.
The arrival of more fighters would further increase the ability of the IAF to deploy advanced jets rapidly in the midst of tensions with neighbouring China and Pakistan, officials said.
The IAF plans to produce three to four Rafale jets every two months, with all 36 aircraft likely to join the fighting fleet of the air force by the end of the year.
The Rafale fighters- have greatly improved the offensive capabilities of the IAF, the leading imported jets to be inducted into the IAF in 23 years since the Russian Sukhoi-30 jets entered service in June 1997.
Rafale will be operated in Ladakh:
In the Ladakh theatre, at which the military is on high alert to cope with any provocation by China at a time when talks have failed to minimize tension in the critical theatre, the IAF operates Rafale fighter jets.
IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria stated:
Last month, the integration of Rafale fighter jets placed in a platform armed with advanced weapons, sensors as well as technology that gave the IAF an operational and technological advantage, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria said.
In September 2016, the jets were ordered from France under a government-to-government contract worth ₹59,000 crores.
A helmet-mounted view, radar warning receivers, flight data recorders with 10-hour data storage, infrared search and monitor systems, jammers, cold engine start capability to operate from high-altitude bases, and towed decoys to ward off incoming missiles are India-specific upgrades on the Rafales.
A variety of missions can be carried out by the twin-engine jet: land and sea attack, air defence, and air supremacy, reconnaissance, and deterrence of nuclear attacks. It is capable of holding almost 10 tonnes of guns.
