#RAFALE FLIGHT SERIAL#
Dassault is also currently supporting a comprehensive upgrade effort for India’s Mirages.įirst Indian Rafale to fly was DH serial RB008, which made its maiden flight on October 30, 2018, from Bordeaux-Mérignac. The initial batch includes 28 single-seat Rafale EH models and eight two-seat DHs.įrance has proved a reliable partner for India, having participated in a number of fighter projects, including the supply of Mirage 2000 fighters. A contract for 36 Rafales was signed in New Delhi on September 23, 2016, and it included a possible follow-on sale of 36 additional aircraft. Instead, India said it would purchase 36 Rafales under a government-to-government contract, but with no local production. However, after several rounds of negotiations, the MMRCA program broke down in April 2015. MMRCA was set as a 126-aircraft requirement, and it mandated that 108 jets should be built locally by HAL. India shortlisted the Rafale and the Eurofighter in April 2011, and after a long and exhaustive evaluation process, the French fighter was declared the winner on January 31 the following year. An initial competition included the Rafale, along with the Eurofighter, Gripen, F-16, MiG-35, and Super Hornet. India’s MMRCA project was set against the replacement of its aging MiG-21 Bisons and MiG-27s, the latter of which was retired at the end of 2019. The Indian Rafales are rumored to be similarly capable, but India has never confirmed if that capability exists in any of its fighter aircraft. The Rafale F3 variant is now France's primary nuclear-capable combat aircraft.
According to Singh this weapon was selected on cost grounds, however, the pressing requirement has resulted in the Air Force opting for a ready-baked solution for the Rafale in HAMMER. The Indian Air Force previously planned to integrate the Rafael SPICE (Smart, Precise Impact, Cost-Effective) weapon on its Rafales in-country. These weapons would be ideally suited to taking out buried targets in mountainous locations such as Eastern Ladakh. Shortly before the delivery of the first five aircraft, it was announced that the Indian Air Force would also procure the Sagem HAMMER (Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range), also known as Armement Air-Sol Modulaire (AASM), to meet an urgent operational requirement for the new Rafales amid a serious face-off against China. The weapons package that accompanies the Rafale procurement includes the MBDA Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), both infre-red and radar-guided versions of the MICA Multi-Mission Air-to-Air Missiles, and the Scalp long-range cruise missile.