6 Rafale fighters to land in India on April 28, 4 more in May: Official

[safari2021]

Six Rafale warplanes will land in India on April 28, enabling the Indian Air Force (IAF) to take the first steps to raise its second squadron of the fourth-generation-plus fighter jets at West Bengal’s Hasimara airbase, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Four more fighters are scheduled to reach next month.


The 6 planes will allow the IAF to fully raise the No. 17 Squadron, also known as the Golden Arrows. The squadron, disbanded in 2016 after the IAF started phasing out of Russian-origin MiG 21 jets, was revived in September last year after the induction of the first batch of the French-origin warplanes. The squadron is based out of Ambala Air Force Station, India’s oldest airbase that is strategically located near India’s border with Pakistan and China.

A senior IAF official said induction of the 6 fighters will complete the Golden Arrows squadron - it currently has 14 fighters against a standard squadron strength of 18 - and enable the air force to induct 2 remaining planes from this batch in the second Rafale squadron to be raised at the Hasimara airbase in Bengal’s Siliguri corridor. The four planes expected in May will also be sent to the squadron in Hasimara which will cover central and eastern Tibet.

6 Rafale fighters to land in India on April 28, 4 more in May: Official

The IAF is trying to see if the 6 Rafale fighters can be flagged off by IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria during his visit to Paris later this month but it may not be possible.

www.hindustantimes.com

 

[Yongpeng Sun-Tastaufen]

Rafale is good but it cannot compete against J-20 which is far more capable.

 

[Trango Towers]

Six Rafale warplanes will land in India on April 28, enabling the Indian Air Force (IAF) to take the first steps to raise its second squadron of the fourth-generation-plus fighter jets at West Bengal’s Hasimara airbase, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Four more fighters are scheduled to reach next month.


The 6 planes will allow the IAF to fully raise the No. 17 Squadron, also known as the Golden Arrows. The squadron, disbanded in 2016 after the IAF started phasing out of Russian-origin MiG 21 jets, was revived in September last year after the induction of the first batch of the French-origin warplanes. The squadron is based out of Ambala Air Force Station, India’s oldest airbase that is strategically located near India’s border with Pakistan and China.

A senior IAF official said induction of the 6 fighters will complete the Golden Arrows squadron - it currently has 14 fighters against a standard squadron strength of 18 - and enable the air force to induct 2 remaining planes from this batch in the second Rafale squadron to be raised at the Hasimara airbase in Bengal’s Siliguri corridor. The four planes expected in May will also be sent to the squadron in Hasimara which will cover central and eastern Tibet.

6 Rafale fighters to land in India on April 28, 4 more in May: Official

The IAF is trying to see if the 6 Rafale fighters can be flagged off by IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria during his visit to Paris later this month but it may not be possible.

www.hindustantimes.com

Will they have armaments or will we create another big commotion that the aircraft can carry weapons

 

[INDIAPOSITIVE]

Six Rafale warplanes will land in India on April 28, enabling the Indian Air Force (IAF) to take the first steps to raise its second squadron of the fourth-generation-plus fighter jets at West Bengal’s Hasimara airbase, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Four more fighters are scheduled to reach next month.

The 6 planes will allow the IAF to fully raise the No. 17 Squadron, also known as the Golden Arrows. The squadron, disbanded in 2016 after the IAF started phasing out of Russian-origin MiG 21 jets, was revived in September last year after the induction of the first batch of the French-origin warplanes. The squadron is based out of Ambala Air Force Station, India’s oldest airbase that is strategically located near India’s border with Pakistan and China.

A senior IAF official said induction of the 6 fighters will complete the Golden Arrows squadron - it currently has 14 fighters against a standard squadron strength of 18 - and enable the air force to induct 2 remaining planes from this batch in the second Rafale squadron to be raised at the Hasimara airbase in Bengal’s Siliguri corridor. The four planes expected in May will also be sent to the squadron in Hasimara which will cover central and eastern Tibet.


A second IAF official said the IAF was trying to see if the six Rafale fighters could be flagged off by IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria during his visit to Paris later this month. “But it looks difficult,” he said.

The arrival of 10 fighters in two batches by next month will raise the strength of the Rafales in the air force to 24. French ambassador Emmanuel Lenain told reporters last week that the delivery of all 36 Rafale jets will be completed by 2022 as per the contract.

India had inked a ₹59,000 crore ($8.7 billion) agreement with the French government to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets, replacing the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime’s decision to buy 126 Rafale aircraft, 108 of which were to be made in India by the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

The deal was dragged into a controversy after the opposition led by the Congress claimed that the NDA government was buying the planes at an inflated price. The Supreme Court and the government’s top auditor, Comptroller and Auditor General, did not find any indication of malfeasance. But the controversy was reignited over the last week after a French online journal, Mediapart, claimed that Dassault Aviation, which manufactures the Rafale jet, paid €1 million to a Sushen Gupta, described as a “middleman”, in connection with the deal for 36 jets.

A French diplomat in Delhi said the French aviation giant, Dassault Aviation, and the government would issue an appropriate rebuttal to the ‘so-called expose’ by the online portal.

The diplomat cited a $3.7 billion deal between France and Greece for the sale of 18 Rafale jets including 12 used fighters to assert that this agreement sealed in Athens suggested that New Delhi had negotiated better terms.

The warplanes received by the IAF are equipped with India-specific enhancements including the Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles, Mica multi-mission air-to-air missiles, Scalp deep-strike cruise missiles and the Hammer smart weapon.

6 Rafale fighters to land in India on April 28, 4 more in May: Official

The IAF is trying to see if the 6 Rafale fighters can be flagged off by IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria during his visit to Paris later this month but it may not be possible.

www.hindustantimes.com

 

[Invicta]

So what's the total number now? Is it enough to provide any credible deterrence from PAF.

 

[Windjammer]

So what's the total number now? Is it enough to provide any credible deterrence from PAF.

If over 270 SU-30s can't give surety to Indians, what price a few Dozen Rafales.

 

[Invicta]

If over 270 SU-30s can't give surety to Indians, what price a few Dozen Rafales.

Don't rain on their parade yet, leave that to the boys in PAF.

 

[HostileInsurgent]

If over 270 SU-30s can't give surety to Indians, what price a few Dozen Rafales.

Rafales are medium weight jets so not comparable to MKIs.

 

[UKBengali]

If over 270 SU-30s can't give surety to Indians, what price a few Dozen Rafales.

Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor >> PAF F-16 Block 52 or JF-17 Block 2.
Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor > JF-17 Block 3.

Pakistan does not have anything anywhere near this level of tech right now and the JF-17 Block 3 will be somewhat inferior as well. JF-17 Block 3 does have the advantage of being cheaper to buy and operate.

Russian planes like SU-30MKI are junk as their radars, electronics and missiles have fallen massively behind the West over the last 30 years - even China is better in this area now.

 

[Yasser76]

Great, another news post of another delivery. No other country is in such of of foreign stuff. Now expecting Indian Media to keep us updated with every successful take off and landing....

 

[alphapak]

Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor >> PAF F-16 Block 52 or JF-17 Block 2.
Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor > JF-17 Block 3.

Pakistan does not have anything anywhere near this level of tech right now and the JF-17 Block 3 will be somewhat inferior as well. JF-17 Block 3 does have the advantage of being cheaper to buy and operate.

Russian planes like SU-30MKI are junk as their radars, electronics and missiles have fallen massively behind the West over the last 30 years - even China is better in this area now.

They used to say that Pak has nothing to match the SU30 before Feb 2019 and now
they say we have nothing to match the Rafale. Lol

 

[HostileInsurgent]

Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor >> PAF F-16 Block 52 or JF-17 Block 2.
Rafale + Spectra + AESA radar + Meteor > JF-17 Block 3.

Pakistan does not have anything anywhere near this level of tech right now and the JF-17 Block 3 will be somewhat inferior as well. JF-17 Block 3 does have the advantage of being cheaper to buy and operate.

Russian planes like SU-30MKI are junk as their radars, electronics and missiles have fallen massively behind the West over the last 30 years - even China is better in this area now.

Su-30MKI uses the same things that it were installed 22 years ago. Today IAF chief flew inan upgraded MKI. Super Sukhoi upgrade is under pipeline in less than a year.

 

[Pappa Alpha]

They used to say that Pak has nothing to match the SU30 before Feb 2019 and now
they say we have nothing to match the Rafale. Lol

Well said. The naivety of some folks surprises me. Air combat is not 1v1 anymore. Lots of other systems are in play in modern air combat.

 

[ziaulislam]

Su-30MKI uses the same things that it were installed 22 years ago. Today IAF chief flew inan upgraded MKI. Super Sukhoi upgrade is under pipeline in less than a year.

Not really just till recently HAL were chunning out su30

Are you saying the IAF planners are so idiotic that they absolutely didnt do block production????

 

[F-6 enthusiast]

They used to say that Pak has nothing to match the SU30 before Feb 2019 and now
they say we have nothing to match the Rafale. Lol

This video calculates the detection range of Rafale using klj-7A radar.

He gives the Rafale Benefit of Doubt and decreases its RCS from 1 to 0.5 in contrast to public sources.

He uses the following formula to calculate the detection range

Aerial engagements are not simple ''point and click''. Involves factors like EW systems , manuevering , other assets like AWACS etc etc.

It is also not wise to underestimate the opponent. PAF's edge over IAF can be attributed to many things but most significant is the training PAF received compared to what the IAF got from the Russians.

Now they are getting Training from the french which will be better than the Russian. Enemy should not be underestimated. I am sure PAF, like any other professional and forward thinking organisation has taken steps



EDIT: HEre is a research paper from Beijing University of Aeronautics , detailing manuevers strategy in BVR combat.
No missile will operate at maximum specs against a manuevering target like a fighter. Range and probability of Kill is also influenced by Height at which missile is fired (density of air ) and many other factors.

24-ICICM2011M054.pdf (ipcsit.com)