Rafale Fighter Jet and its Importance for Indian Armed Forces

India will be receiving first batch consisting of 5 Rafale Fighter Jets on 29th July 2020. India has ordered Total 36 Rafale Fighter Jets from France for 7.87 Billion Euros .The first batch will land at Ambala Airbase tomorrow and will be deployed within next 15 Days at the LAC to offer enhanced support to Ground forces and bolster India’s aerial fighting capability. Second Squadron will be stationed at Hasimara Base in West Bengal. Required infrastructure has already been developed at both bases to accomodate Rafale. Also Indian Airforce pilots have been undergoing specialised Training in France for last 4–5 Months to be able to fly these New Aircraft efficiently.

The Rafales on their way to India from France will be refuelled Mid Air by a French Air Tanker followed by a short halt at UAE for the pilots.

Rafale being inducted into Indian Airforce at this critical juncture is Huge advantage to India as it is one of the Best Medium Multirole Fighter Aircraft with State of the Art Radar Systems, Weapon System and offers superior Avionics which is Advantage India in combat situations. Multirole means it can perform multiple roles according to situation such as Air to Air Combat and Air to Surface support as well for Ground forces . So, what makes Rafale one of the Best in the world , lets have a look :

1. Rafale is designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation,France and India already has in service Mirage 2000 and Jaguar Fighter Aircrafts that are also manufactured by Dassault Aviation, France.
2. Rafale which means “Gust of Wind” is Medium Multirole Combat aircraft designed to perform Air Reconnaissance,Air Superiority,Nuclear Deterrence,Interdiction,In depth Strike and Anti Ship strike and offer Ground support as well. It is referred to as “Omnirole” aircraft due to multiple functionalities. It is a Nuclear attack capable jet.
3. Chunk of Avionics work and Engine repairs will be done in India with French expertise initially and this will thus offer great employment offers to Technical persons in India in long run.It will also help create an ecosystem of Defence equipment production and manufacturing in India.
4. Rafale is capable of firing Meteor and Scalp missiles which are the best in class for Air to Air and Air to Surface roles respectively. Meteor missile is Active Radar Guided Beyond Visual Range Air to Air Missile with range in excess of 100 KM. It is useful as it can be re-targeted according to target updates in mid flight using fast changing data.It can intercept and target long range UAV’s and Aircrafts with enhanced manoeuvring capability. Currently India will be getting Rafale without integrated Meteor missiles but these will be integrated in due course of time in India.
5. Scalp missile is Stealth activated Long range Air to Surface cruise missile.It is also known as Storm Shadow in some circles.Both these missiles are deadly combination for the Enemy and this covers all bases. Scalp missile has the capability to go undetected under Enemy’s radar systems and this makes it class apart.

India Specific enhancements in Rafale done by France :
The Rafale deal caters to specific Indian air force needs. The fighter jet will be modified by France to meet the following criteria customised for Indian conditions:
1. Helmet mounted sights and targeting system to give the pilots lightening quick ability to shoot off weapons.
2. Ability to take off from high altitude airbases like Leh on a ‘cold start’ — for quick reaction deployment.
3. A radar warning receiver to identify hostile tracking systems.

4.Spares support for next 50 Years.

Current Scenario : Rafale will be India’s Best fighter aircraft closely followed by Russian SU-30MK1 which is the current best. India currently has a shortage of 12 Squadrons to effectively fight a 2 Front war with China and Pakistan.

India Currently has 30 Squadrons (Each Squadron consists of 18 Jets) as against sanctioned strength of 42 Squadrons in IAF. India aims to fulfill this through 2 Squadrons of Rafale besides inducting Indigenous Tejas LCA also to fulfill the shortfall. Recently IAF also placed orders for additional 21 MIG-29 aircrafts and 12 Sukhoi 30MK1 MMRCA to fill up depleting Aircraft strength of IAF. Also MIG-21 Bison the mainstay of IAF for many years now is set to be phased out in 2021 as well. India also approved upgradation of 59 Mig-29 aircrafts besides procuring 248 Astra Missiles for Tri Services.

Present Equipment and Aircraft :

Currently India has SU-30MK1 (Russian Origin made in India with colloboration with HAL), Mirage 2000(French), Jaguar(French),Mig-21 Bison which have been upgraded but will be phased out soon and Mig-29(Russian) and Tejas(Indian) Aircrafts apart from Helicopters, Trainer,Transport and Tanker aircrafts.

Induction of Rafale aircraft will send a very strong signal to India’s Neighbours and surely catch them off guard.It will strengthen India regionally, increase its military might and further isolate Chinese and Pakistanis.