Rafale wins India's MMRCA

Indian Air Force’s (IAF) elite test pilots are preparing the groundwork for constituting a project management team that will soon travel to France and work with Dassault in customising the aircraft for India’s operational needs. India signed a Rs 60,000 crore deal with Dassault to procure 36 fighters under the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) programme recently.

The team will be constituted at the Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE) headquartered in Bengaluru, its commandant Air Vice Marshal Sandeep Singh confirmed to TOI.

It was ASTE which did the field trials for all six contenders—Lockheed Martin’s F-16; Boeing’s F/A-18 E/F; European Eurofighter Typhoon; the Swedish Gripen; the French Dassault’s Rafale and the Russian Mig-35.

Out of the six contenders only the Eurofighter Typhoon and Rafale met all the 750 quality requirements, including weapon systems. ASTE clarified that they do not compare aircraft and that only clear them based on requirement and that the decision of picking one is made at a higher level.

Singh, explained that the team, once constituted will have pilots, engineers and air crew. “The size of the team will vary. For the Su-30MKI for example, we had a 10 member team,” he said.

Given that the ASTE has already flown Rafale, a smaller team will be going to France. The advantage that this will give the IAF is that it will bring back a known platform, which its pilots understand.SU30-Brahmos integration soon

Further, Singh said that the Su30-MKI and air-launched cruise missile Brahmos will happen soon with the firing of the actual missile. “Advanced trials are ongoing as we speak. We’ve already completed a dummy drop and the next drop will be the actual missile,” he said.The integration will enable IAF to strike targets 300km away and the aircraft had to be modified to accommodate this missile.

The IAF’s initial requirement is for two Su-30 MKIs with BrahMos but it eventually wishes to integrate 216 missiles on 42 Sukhois. The project was conceived in July-August 2012 and as TOI had reported late in 2015, some quality certification issues has delayed the integration, which was to be complete by the end of 2015. Posted in India

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Special-team-for-Rafale-readies-ground-work-to-visit-France/articleshow/54681720.cms

This clause is expected to boost indigenous defence production with transfer of technology and joint ventures with local partner firms

The 7.87 billion Euro agreement between India and France for the 36 Rafale fighter jets comes with a 50% offset clause which means that Indian companies will get business worth over 3 billion euros and generating thousands of jobs in India through offsets. (Reuters)


A decade after then defence minister AK Antony approved the Request for Proposal to buy 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft, the Indian Air Force will get its first Rafale fighter jets in the next 33 months from French company Dassault Aviation. The 36 aircraft that the IAF will get will replace the ailing MiGs. The first plane will be delivered within three and half years, and the entire lot in five years.

The 7.87 billion Euro agreement between India and France for the 36 Rafale fighter jets comes with a 50% offset clause which means that Indian companies will get business worth over 3 billion euros and generating thousands of jobs in India through offsets. This is reportedly the largest ever offset contract in India’s history. This clause is expected to boost indigenous defence production with transfer of technology, joint ventures with local partner firms, licensed production and even perhaps relocation of production lines in the long run.

“The offset clause of 50% in the Rafale deal will provide a great opportunity for indigenous manufacturers such as us who have put in years of effort to develop world-class technology within the country,” says Puneet Kaura, MD and CEO, Samtel Avionics. “It further outlines the commitment made by the Indian government to promote the Indian manufacturing industry and support indigenisation of defence needs of the country. There is also a possibility for India to become a global manufacturing hub for these fighter planes in case there is successful transfer of technology.”
Since Dassault Aviation Company was not keen on transfer of technology, under the 50% offset clause, it has agreed to help India with the Light Combat Aircraft MK 2 and AMCA.

French company Snecma (Safran)( a Dassault partner along with Thales) has proposed to invest Euro one billion in the Kaveri Gas Turbine Engine to be fitted in the LCA MK1A. Safran has developed the M88 engine that powers the Rafale as well as the Shakti engine for Indian advanced light helicopters (ALH) ‘Dhruv’.

MBDA will work with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to transfer Thrust Vectoring technologies that are expected to be used in Astra and other missiles putting them at the level of Meteor—making the missiles more lethal.
Under the deal, the French company has agreed to transfer the special spray paint and coating technology which is of immense benefit to Indian programmes, including LCA, AMCA, SU-30 MKI and FGFA.

Also, it is expected that 36 combat machines could get the final layer of the stealth paint here in India as part of Make in India initiative.

The radar technology on Rafale can easily be adapted to other aircrafts in IAF. As part of the deal, the multimode AESA radar technology will be transferred to DRDO for application on UTTAM AESA radar.

The high-end twin engine aircraft with a state-of-the-art electronic scanning radar will certainly add to the IAF’s capabilities. The MBDA’s new-age Meteor Beyond Visual Range missile, can hit targets over 150 km away, without entering the enemy airspace before launching an attack. The aircraft is also capable of firing nuclear missiles.

http://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/rafael-fighter-jet-deal-to-create-thousands-of-jobs-india-inc-to-get-3-bn-euros-worth-biz/412366/

The Indian Government on Tuesday disclosed some details of the $ 8.85 billion deal to purchase French combat aircraft.

1. “The terms of the procurement include five years of performance based logistics (PBL) with options for additional seven year extension. The terms also provide for 50 years’ product support by the manufacturer,” informed Manohar Parrikar, India’s Minister of Defense to the Parliament.

2. “The deliveries of the aircraft will commence in September 2019 and will be completed in April 2022,” Parrikar added.

3. Under the contract, Dassault will make India-specific changes to the aircraft and mount different types of missiles: beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air Meteor, short and medium range air-to-air MICA and precision guided air-to-ground SCALP missiles.

4. The procurement includes a provision for offsets of 50 percent of the value of the Aircraft and Weapons Package.


Read more: https://sputniknews.com/military/201611231047742056-india-rafale-jets/

Rafale fighter jet for India Modifications were named the Rafale-EH and Rafale-DH.

The first deliveries to India are scheduled for 2019.

http://bmpd.livejournal.com/2369504.html

First Indian Rafale in the air

As the Indian resources were reported, on October 30, 2018, in France, without much publicity, the first Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft built for the Indian Air Force, a two-seat Rafale DH aircraft with the Indian number RB008, made its first flight. In the first flight, the fighter flew from the airfield of the head office of Dassault Aviation in Merignac, near Bordeaux, to the French Air Force flight test center at the Istres airbase, where it will undergo a further test program. The aircraft does not yet bear the identification marks of the Indian Air Force.

This double-seat aircraft Rafale DH with the Indian military number RB008, although it made the first flight, however, will be used in Istra for testing and training of Indian instructors, and as a result, it is expected that the last of the ordered 36 aircraft will actually arrive in India - in 2022 year

Recall that the intergovernmental Indian-French agreement on the acquisition by India of 36 Dassault Rafale fighter jets was concluded on September 23, 2016, its cost is estimated at $ 8.2 billion. According to the agreement, 28 single-seater Rafale EH fighters should be supplied to India (Indian military numbers with BS001 BS028) and eight double Rafale DH planes (Indian military numbers from RB001 to RB008). It is interesting to note that the letters of the Indian military numbers Rafale were formed by the initials of two commanders of the Indian Air Force - the current Chief of Staff of the Indian Air Force, Air Marshal B.S. Dhanoa, and Marshal of Aviation R. B. Bhadauri, who led the Indian Procurement Negotiating Committee, Rafale. Now the beginning of the actual deliveries of the Rafale Indian Air Force is expected in September 2019, the transfer of aircraft will continue until April 2022.

As part of the Indian Air Force, Rafale fighters must be equipped with two fighter squadrons at Ambala and Hashimar air bases.

Video of one of the subsequent test flights of the first Rafale Rafale DH fighter (Indian military number RB008) built for the Indian Air Force from Istra airbase (s) Indian Aerospace Defense News - IADN



https://bmpd.livejournal.com/3412583.html

The RoCAF's Mirages have suffered from low operational readiness and high maintenance costs; the harsh environment and high operational tempo had caused higher-than-expected wear and tear
[possibly due to the island’s subtropical climate)]. After the presence of cracks in the blades of the aircraft's engines were detected in 2009, Dassault worked with Taiwanese authorities to successfully rectify the issue and provided compensation for the engine damage. By the following year, normal training hours of 15 per month had resumed and the fleet's operational readiness had been restored, after having reportedly dropped to 6 hours per month because of the engine troubles. In addition to this issue, there were considerations of mothballing the entire Mirage fleet because of its high maintenance costs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_2000#Taiwan

Vietnam & Indonesia also have Su-27/-30s, but I never heard them suffering from hot & humid conditions.
OTH, Mirages were used mostly in temperate/desert climates, & AFAIK, they weren't deployed to tropical French Guiana/Polynesia to give the designers in their air conditioned offices a valuable feedback:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_III#Exports_and_license_production
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_5#Operators
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_2000#Operational_history

I doubt that the Rafale won't be a deja vu!

Tsavo Lion wrote:The RoCAF's Mirages have suffered from low operational readiness and high maintenance costs; the harsh environment and high operational tempo had caused higher-than-expected wear and tear
[possibly due to the island’s subtropical climate)]. After the presence of cracks in the blades of the aircraft's engines were detected in 2009, Dassault worked with Taiwanese authorities to successfully rectify the issue and provided compensation for the engine damage. By the following year, normal training hours of 15 per month had resumed and the fleet's operational readiness had been restored, after having reportedly dropped to 6 hours per month because of the engine troubles. In addition to this issue, there were considerations of mothballing the entire Mirage fleet because of its high maintenance costs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_2000#Taiwan

Vietnam & Indonesia also have Su-27/-30s, but I never heard them suffering from hot & humid conditions.
OTH, Mirages were used mostly in temperate/desert climates, & AFAIK, they weren't deployed to tropical French Guiana/Polynesia to give the designers in their air conditioned offices a valuable feedback:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_III#Exports_and_license_production
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_5#Operators
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Mirage_2000#Operational_history

I doubt that the Rafale won't be a deja vu!

Not only Vietnam and Indonesia, but also Malaysia and Venezuela use Su-30 in hot and humid tropical conditions and non have problems with them. It is also true, that Vietnam, Venezuela and Indonesia use 100% Russian Su-30 without foreign components inside.

What follows in this three-part analysis is a contextualized and accessible retelling of the report on the Rafale order, explaining how an acquisition process was manipulated at every stage and the system played to the advantage of a single company from the year 2000.

Anything, as long as it’s French
Very briefly, the IAF first tried to get a French fighter — the Mirage 2000, without a contest. Three times.

But they were forced to hold a contest according to the rules. This time, there was a new French fighter in the contest, the Rafale, the successor to the Mirage 2000.

The new French fighter was kicked out three times, according to the rules. Each time, the French fighter was brought back into the contest.

Four of the six competing aircraft could have easily beaten the Rafale on price. These four aircraft were thrown out of the contest for nebulous and unconvincing technical reasons.

Only two aircraft now remained in the contest. The Rafale and the Eurofighter. The only way the Rafale could win would be to beat the Eurofighter bid on cost comparison.

The interpretation of the cost was fixed to make the Eurofighter, appear more expensive and the French fighter was announced the cheaper ‘L1’ bid.

But it didn’t end there.

A deal was simply impossible because it became clear that the French fighter was simply not L1, or the cheaper aircraft. Nor did the French have any intention of allowing the aircraft to be built in India.

The defence ministry finally, officially admitted this conclusion. But only two weeks after this, a request was announced for 36 Rafale fighters. Two months later, the MMRCA tender was cancelled.

Why Rafale, again? Because Rafale was ‘L1’ said the government. Even though it actually, really wasn’t.

Please read the full report here by Saurabh Joshi

Part-1 #RafaleScam: The CAG’s History How the game was fixed for the French fighter

Part-2 How the MMRCA was killed #RafaleScam And the Eurofighter was shafted by interpretation of costs

Part 3 #RafaleScam: The Crucial Date The date reveals what was known, to whom, and when

Pathetic, not only did the frogs lie about the price, or that thy lied about TOT, they couldn't even be pressed to deliver the damn planes in India....the Indians had to come to France to receive their first lmao!  No doubt the French winning the MMRCA tender came from bribing officials (typical of India).

Is that inflight refuelling probe fixed?

Doesn't look very stealthy at all... will be interesting to see what the Indians think of it after a few years service...

First Dassault Rafale fighter shipments to India delayed due to coronavirus

The delivery of the first batch of French Dassault Rafale fighters for the Indian Air Force is likely to be delayed by about three months due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the Indian newspaper The Hindu reports.

“In mid-March, there were 8–9 weeks to study before the first main group could move to India to start work. The delivery of some equipment for testing and maintenance at Ambala airbase was also supposed to take place in early April, but was delayed due to restrictions on flights imposed by India, ”the source said“ The Hindu ”on condition of anonymity.
 Quarantine measures in France are expected to last at least until the end of April due to the severity of the outbreak of coronavirus. “Thus, obviously, we expect a corresponding delay,” the newspaper said. “Given the quarantine in France, as well as the restrictions on the arrival of flights from Europe imposed by India, we could count on July [as the deadline for the arrival of the first fighters].”

  Note bmpd. An intergovernmental Indian-French agreement on the acquisition by India of 36 Dassault Rafale fighters was concluded on September 23, 2016, and its cost is estimated at $ 8.7 billion. By agreement, 28 single-seat Rafale EH fighters (Indian military numbers from BS 001 to BS are to be delivered to India) 028) and eight two-seaters Rafale DH (Indian military numbers from RB 001 to RB 008).
 The first four Rafale Indian fighters were supposed to arrive in India in May 2020, the transfer of aircraft was planned to be completed in April 2022. As part of the Iydia Air Force, Rafale fighters were the first to receive the 17th squadron, restored in September 2019, at the Ambala airbase, the squadron should be fully equipped with 18 Rafale aircraft in February 2021. Then, Rafale aircraft should be re-equipped with a squadron at Hashimara airbase.

https://bmpd.livejournal.com/3992135.html

https://in.news.yahoo.com/chinas-celebrated-fighter-jet-toothless-060446107.html

India received the first Rafale fighters

On July 29, 2020, the first five Dassault Rafale fighters (three double Rafale DH and two single Rafale EH) out of 36 aircraft supplied by France under the 2016 contract arrived from France at the Indian Ambala airbase from France. The aircraft made an independent flight from the factory airfield of Dassault Aviation Bordeaux-Mérignac since July 27, with refueling in the air and with an intermediate landing at the Al-Dhafra air base in the UAE. Upon entering Indian airspace, the first five Indian Rafale received an honorary escort in the form of two Su-30MKI fighters of the Indian Air Force. One of the first five Dassault Rafale fighters to arrive in India lands at the Indian airbase Ambala, 07/29/2020 (c) Indian Air Force

Another five Rafale fighters already built for the Indian Air Force remain in France to train Indian personnel. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the arrival of the first Indian-supplied Rafale aircraft to Ambala was delayed by about two months. The Rafale arriving joined the 17th Indian Air Force Squadron restored in September 2019 at Ambala Air Base, the squadron should be fully equipped with 18 Rafale aircraft in February 2021.

Recall that the Indian-French intergovernmental agreement on the acquisition of 36 Dassault Rafale fighters by India was concluded on September 23, 2016, its cost is estimated at $ 8.7 billion. Under the agreement, 28 single-seat Rafale EH fighters (Indian military numbers with BS 001 to BS 028) and eight Rafale DH two-seater aircraft (Indian military numbers RB 001 to RB 008).

The official handover ceremony for the Indian Air Force, the first of 36 ordered Dassault Rafale fighters, a two-seat Rafale DH fighter with Indian military number RB 001 (serial number DH01), took place at the headquarters of Dassault Aviation in Bordeaux-Merignac on October 8, 2019. The transfer of all aircraft to the Indian side was scheduled to be completed in April 2022.

After the 17th squadron, then the Indian Air Force squadron at Hasimara airbase should be re-equipped with Rafale aircraft.

India became the third foreign recipient of Rafale fighters after Egypt and Qatar. The first five Dassault Rafale fighters received by the Indian Air Force (three double Rafale DH and two single Rafale EH) after entering Indian airspace, 07/29/2020 (c) Indian Air Force Video:



https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4101322.html

November 4, 2020: The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 28 and was inducted into the IAF on September 10. With the arrival of the second batch, the IAF now has a total of eight Rafale fighter aircraft. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/second-batch-of-rafale-aircraft-arrives-in-india-defence-minister-congratulates-iaf-1738056-2020-11-04

JANUARY 15, 2021:
India, which has ordered thirty-six of the twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft, received the first batch on Sept. 10 and immediately deployed those to the contested Ladakh region.
New Delhi has confirmed that the delivery of the second batch of planes could take place in the next few weeks, ..
The entire batch of the original order of the thirty-six aircraft is expected to be operational by early 2023, National Interest reported.
https://asiatimes.com/2021/01/china-calculation-more-rafale-fighters-bound-for-ladakh/

GarryB wrote:Is that inflight refuelling probe fixed?

Doesn't look very stealthy at all... will be interesting to see what the Indians think of it after a few years service...

It is fixed yes. This is the jet that a lot of people are convinced has a similar RCS to the su 57. Which is delusional but they say it.

There is nothing stealthy about the Rafale. Flankers are more steathy shape wise. But they are bigger. Basically Dassault measured the RCS of it and put a number on it. It was lower than they expected. But only because its smallish. In the same way that the Mig 21 is small on radar.

I hope this is not true and India will not replace original French components with Israeli or Indian ones, because in that case Indian Rafale will be well degraded comparing to original one. Specially IAF could worry about Indian RWR. They didn't detect in MiG-21 Bison and Su-30MKI, that they are engaged and attacked by ARH AAMS (AMRAAM and PL-12). This is very dangerous as PAF and PLAAF could attack IAF Rafales with long range ARH AAMs and they will not even notice that.

Fighter Dassault Rafale Indian Air Force with air-launched cruise missile MBDA SCALP-EG

Isos wrote:Dassault and Thales stuff is thousands time better than istaeli shitty systems.

Better than Israeli, why?

Isos wrote:How many scalp have they ordered ?

Unconfirmed. Apparently 200. Because right now only the Rafale can be integrated with SCALP. But word is Dassault might help IAF integrate SCALP with LCA and Jaguar as well.

Dassault and Thales stuff is thousands time better than istaeli shitty systems. And they will never put foreign stuff inside their planes unless if they need to.

The thing is that even if the Israeli systems were slightly better it is going to be enormously expensive to take out the French stuff and replace it with the Israeli stuff and get it working.

A modern fighter is like a computer network... if you rip stuff out and replace it with other stuff then the company that provided the computer network with all its original components will claim any problems are the new bits you added, and the makers of the new bits will blame the computer network for not being designed with their bits in mind.

A component in a network might need to communicate and work with dozens or hundreds of other parts in the system, and thousands of programmes and operating systems within that network will need to know what the new hardware is and how it works... it was never designed to use different parts, so it wont be plug and play modular stuff.

The Rafale is combat proven, so it is safe to assume its bits work as advertised, so why make it more expensive and potentially less reliable to put in non standard stuff?

You are taking a mature and working system and breaking it... and not only wont it save you any money, it will likely drive the cost up further... it probably partially explains the eye watering cost of these aircraft.

But word is Dassault might help IAF integrate SCALP with LCA and Jaguar as well.

Surely Jaguar is going to be replaced by LCA isn't it?

GarryB wrote: Surely Jaguar is going to be replaced by LCA isn't it?

IAF intends to use the Jaguar till 2030. Hope is by then LCA MK2 will become available.