Fourth batch of 3 Rafale fighter jets arrive in India from France
The fourth batch of 3 Rafale fighter jets arrived in India from France on Wednesday. The jets were provided mid-air refuelling by aircraft from the United Arab Emirates.
"The 4th batch of three IAF Rafales landed on Indian soil after a direct ferry from Istres Air Base France. Rafales were refuelled in-flight by UAE Air Force tankers. This marks yet another milestone in the strong relationship between the two Air Forces," the Indian Air Force said in a statement.
The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.
The formal induction ceremony of the fleet had taken place at Ambala on September 10 last.
A second batch of three Rafale jets arrived in India on November 3 while a third batch of another three jets joined the IAF on January 27. The first Rafale squadron is based in Ambala air force station.
The Indian Air Force is set to raise the second squadron of the Rafale combat jets in mid-April and it will be based in Hasimara air base in West Bengal, according to military officials.
India is expected to get more Rafale jets from France in the next few months.
The Rafale jets, manufactured by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 year after the Sukhoi jets were imported from Russia.
The Rafale jets are capable of carrying a range of potent weapons. European missile maker MBDA's Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile, Scalp cruise missile and MICA weapons system will be the mainstay of the weapons package of the Rafale jets.
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