The first five Rafales bought from France in a multi-billion-dollar deal landed in the country on Wednesday.
The ability to strike air-to-air targets from up to 150 km away and safely hit land targets 300 km within enemy territory make India's Rafales some of the deadliest fighter jets flying in the world.
Known for air-superiority and precision strikes, the French-made Rafales are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 years after the Sukhoi jets were imported from Russia.
The first five Rafales bought from France in a multi-billion-dollar deal landed in the country on Wednesday and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh used their arrival to launch a veiled warning to neighbouring China over territorial tensions.
| Rafale | |
|---|---|
| A French Air Force Dassault Rafale B at RIAT in 2009 | |
| Role | Multirole fighter |
| National origin | France |
| Manufacturer | Dassault Aviation |
| First flight | Rafale A demo: 4 July 1986 Rafale C: 19 May 1991 |
| Introduction | 18 May 2001 |
| Status | In service |
| Primary users | French Air Force French Navy Egyptian Air Force Qatar Air Force |
| Produced | 1986–present |
| Number built | 201 as of 2019[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] |
| Program cost | €45.9 billion (as of FY2013)[8] (US$62.7 billion) |
| Unit cost | Rafale B: €74M (flyaway cost, FY2013)[8] Rafale C: €68.8M (flyaway cost, FY2013)[8] Rafale M: €79M (flyaway cost, FY2011)[8] |
World's biggest arms importer :-
India has become the world's biggest arms importer as it modernises its military. India's defence ministry on July 2 approved the purchase of 21 Russian MiG-29 and 12 Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter aircraft costing $2.43bn to replace obsolete Soviet-era weapons.
The defence deals come amid heightened tensions along the disputed frontier with China in Ladakh, where New Delhi has sent reinforcements of fighter jets and military equipment after hand-to-hand combat between Indian and Chinese soldiers on June 15 left 20 Indians dead.
Indian and Chinese military officials and diplomats have held several rounds of talks aimed at reaching a solution but the standoff has continued.
Indian troops regularly clash with Pakistani soldiers along their de facto frontier in disputed Kashmir, which is also claimed by Pakistan
In 2016, five attackers and three Indian troops were killed in more than 14 hours of fighting in an attack on an Indian air force base in Pathankot in neighbouring Punjab state

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