New Delhi. 08 October 2019. Today when Indian Air Force is celebrating it’s 87th birthday, Defence Minister of India Rajnath Singh is in France at the Rafale fighter aircraft handing over ceremony at Merignac along with French Minister of Armed Forces Ms Florence Parly.
He will also perform the Shastra Puja on the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashami and fly a sortie in the Rafale . The four aircraft will fly to India in May 2020 before finally being inducted into service. India is getting 36 Rafale through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) route for around Rs 58,000 crore (€7.87 billion).
According to the deal, the delivery of the jets was to be completed in 67 months from the date the contract was signed. As per the DPP equipment is to be purchased either by soliciting competitive bids from multiple vendors, or directly from friendly foreign countries via an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA). The latter route was chosen for the Rafale deal considering the Air Force’s urgent needs.
The first squadron of the aircraft will be deployed at Ambala and the second squadron at Hasimara base in West Bengal.
