India may procure 31 Rafale-Ms for Navy after 114-jet deal for IAF with France: Report
India may buy an additional 31 Rafale Marine aircraft for the Indian Navy from France after the deal to buy 114 jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF). At present, India has 36 Rafale fight jets.
India is looking to procure 31 Rafale Marine aircraft for the Indian Navy in addition to the proposed 114 French aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) for which a deal is likely to be signed during President Emmanuel Macron visit to New Delhi later this month. If the deal is finalised, then the total number of Rafales ordered by India will rise to 145.
With this order, the Indian Navy will have 57 Rafale-Ms in comparison to 41 of their French counterpart, according to a report by La Tribune, which also stated that this signing of the contract is "still far from certain". The report also stated that India had identified the need for 31 Rafale-M jets several years ago.
At present, the IAF has two squadrons of Rafale jets. In April last year, India and France had also signed a Rs 64,000 crore deal for 26 Rafale-Ms for the Indian Navy. The deal also states that ancillary equipment, including weapon systems and spares, will also be delivered. The jets, which will likely be delivered in five years of time, are expected to deployed on aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.
Rafales to be built in India
The Rafale, which is a 4.5-generation twin-engine multirole fighter aircraft that is designed by the Dassault Aviation, will be built in India as per the agreement. Of the 114 fighter jets, 18 will be delivered in a fly-away condition, and the rest will be manufactured in India. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said that the 96 Rafales will be manufactured with 40 to 50 per cent localisation under the 'Make in India' initiative.
The government-to-government agreement will also allow the integration of Indian weapon systems in the Rafales, Singh said.
"It also enables us to induct fighter aircraft relatively quickly because the first of the Rafale Marines will start coming in '28, and after that, over a period of time, you will see that about three and a half years from now, the first of these Air Force Rafales will also start coming," he told news agency ANI.
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