New Delhi: To give further strength to the Indian Air Force, 6 Rafale war planes will land in India on 28 April. The Indian Air Force (IAF) has taken this step to strengthen its second squadron of fourth generation fighter jets at Hasimara Airbase in West Bengal. Four more fighter aircraft are scheduled to reach India by next month.
The 6 aircraft will allow the Indian Air Force to completely fly the number 17 squadron, also known as the Golden Arrow. The squadron, which was disbanded in 2016, was included in the first batch of French-origin warplanes in September last year after the Indian Air Force’s Russian-origin MiG-21 jets exited the squadron.
The squadron is made up of Ambala Air Force Station, India’s oldest airbase, strategically located near India’s border with Pakistan and China.
A senior Indian Air Force official said that the induction of 6 fighter jets would complete the Golden Arrow Squadron – it currently has a standard squadron strength of 18 in 14 fighter jets – and the Air Force was assigned the second remaining Rafale Squadron from this batch. Enables inclusion in. These aircraft are parked at Hasimara Airbase in Siliguri Corridor, Bengal. The four aircraft expected in May will also be sent to Hasimara’s squadron which will cover Central and Eastern Tibet.
Another SP official said that the Air Force was trying to see if 6 Rafale fighter jets could be flagged off by IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria during a visit to Paris later this month. Although it looks difficult.
By the next month, the arrival of 10 fighter planes in two batches will increase Rafale’s strength to 24 in the Air Force. French Ambassador Emmanuelle Lenin told reporters last week that the delivery of all 36 Rafale jets would be completed by 2022 as per the contract.
India signed a 59,000-crore ($ 8.7 billion) deal with the French government to purchase 36 Rafale fighter jets, overturning the UPA government’s decision to buy 126 Rafale aircraft, 108 of which were government-owned in India, Hindustan. To be made by Aeronautics Limited; .
The deal was mired in controversy when the government was accused of procuring the aircraft at expensive prices. However, the Supreme Court and the top auditors of the government, the Comptroller and Auditor General did not find any sign of malfunction. But Mediapart, a French online magazine, claimed that the secret of the dispute was that Dassault Aviation, which manufactures Rafael Jet, paid 1 million to Sushil Gupta, a ‘middleman’, to make the deal.
The combat aircraft that the Indian Air Force has received are equipped with India-specific enhancements, ranging from meteors to visual range air-to-air missiles, mica multi-mission air-to-air missiles, scalp deep-strike cruise missiles and hammers. Smart weapons are included.
(With agency inputs)