Dassault Aviation delivered the first Rafale aircraft to the IAF this Thursday. The formal handover will be done on Dusshera, which coincides with Air Force Day (Oct 8) this year. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will officially accept the handover on Oct 8.
Crux of the Matter
In Sept 2016, India and France inked a Rs 59,000 crore deal for purchase of 36 Rafale aircrafts in a fly-away condition.
The first aircraft is expected to arrive in India next summer after installation of India-specific customisations.
Training of IAF officers on the new aircraft will be conducted in the mean time in France.
The initial request for multi-role comabt aircrafts had been put forward by the Indian Air Force in 2001. The tender process had been embroiled in delays since 2007 spanning over the tenure of 3 governments.
Curiopedia
The Dassault Rafale is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide range of weapons, the Rafale is intended to perform air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike and nuclear deterrence missions. The Rafale is referred to as an “omnirole” aircraft by Dassault. More Info
The Rafale deal controversy is a political controversy in India related to the purchase of 36 multirole fighter aircraft for a price estimated at €7.8 billion by the Defence Ministry of India from France’s Dassault Aviation. The origin of the deal lies in the Indian MRCA competition, a multi-billion dollar contract to supply 126 multi-role combat aircraft to the Indian Air Force (IAF). On 14 December 2018, the court dismissed all the petitions seeking a probe into the alleged irregularities in the deal, and gave a clean chit to the Union government on all the three aspects, viz., the decision making, pricing and selection of Indian offset partner. More Info
Curated Coverage
Livemint – Indian Air Force ‘accepts’ Rafale, formal hand-over on Dussehra
The New Indian Express – IAF receives first Rafale combat aircraft from Dassault Aviation in France
Zee Business – REVEALED: Why IAF chose occasion of Dussehra for receiving 1st Rafale jet
India Today – Flying a Rafale is like driving a Mercedes, says IAF Chief BS Dhanoa
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