The wait for the Indian armed forces is finally over. Five Rafale fighter jets will fly to India from France’s Istres airbase on Monday. These aircraft will be flown by Indian Air Force pilots and will stop at the Al Dhafra airbase of the United Arab Emirates for refueling.
The five Rafale aircraft will reach Ambala airbase on Wednesday by covering an air distance of 7364 km. It is believed that next week these five aircraft will be deployed in view of the China border dispute. These five aircraft are the first consignment of the 36 aircraft agreement between India and France. So far, 12 fighter pilots of the Air Force have completed their training on the Rafale fighter jet in France. Some more are in the advanced stage of their training.
As per the agreement between India and France, the two countries have to train a total of 36 Air Force pilots on Rafale fighter jets by French aviators. While most of the Air Force pilots will be trained in France, some will be practicing in India. The special thing is that these pilots will be brought by Indian pilots. In the first batch, 10 fighter aircraft were to be delivered to India but due to lack of ready aircraft, five aircraft will reach India at present.
On 2 June, India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh held a telephone conversation with his French counterpart Florence Parle. During this, he said that Rafale aircraft would be delivered to India despite the Corona virus epidemic in France. These aircraft are capable of carrying many powerful weapons with them.
The arrival of the Rafale aircraft to India is considered important amid the ongoing border dispute with China. This is expected to speed up delivery of Rafale aircraft in the future. Air Force officials said that after the arrival of Rafale planes, the combat capabilities of the Air Force will increase further. Explain that India had signed an inter-governmental agreement with France in September 2016 to buy 36 Rafale fighter aircraft for about 58 thousand crores.
