First Rafale jet to hit Indian skies in May: IAF chief

Bhadauria said there was no plan to purchase additional jets

Air Chief Marshal R.K. Bhadauria addressing media in Delhi | Arvind Jain Air Chief Marshal R.K. Bhadauria addressing media in Delhi | Arvind Jain

Ruling out of any separate plan to have additional 36 Rafale fighter jets (besides existing contract of 36 jets), Air Chief Marshal R.K. Bhadauria said that first lot of jets will hit Indian skies only in May next year.

"I have been hearing about acquisition of 36 more Rafale jets. But nothing has been moved. There is no separate plan to have any additional quantity of Rafale jets," Bhadauria said during his media interaction ahead of the IAF Day celebrations. He clarified that the IAF is only focussing on its upcoming 114 jet programme for which an Acceptance of Necessity will be issued soon. Six global firms have already submitted their proposals. The air force came out with a Request for Information (RFI) in April last year, seeking response for its global hunt for 114 fighter jets in the backdrop its depleting combat strength. At present, IAF has 32 combat squadrons, but they will need at least 42 to handle a two-front war scenario.

"The first four Rafale jets will hit Indian skies by the end of May next year after the training of pilots in France," the IAF chief said. The first of the four jets will also have the tail no RB-01. As the then deputy chief of the air staff, Bhadauria was instrumental in the Rafale fighter jet negotiations with the French government and Dassult Aviation and due to his involvement in the Rafale jet talks, his name initials 'RB' was inked on the first Rafale.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on October 8 will officially receive the fighter jet during his visit to France. Singh is also expected take a sortie in the jet at the event after it is formally inducted into the Indian Air Force. 

All four delivered jets will be equipped with over a dozen India-specific enhancements at a cost of around one billion euros.

Training of the first batch of Indian pilots have already been started on the French Air Force planes. A total of 24 Indian pilots will be trained in three different batches till May 2020.

Pushing indigenisation, the air chief said AMCA (advanced medium combat aircraft) will be given priority along with 83 LCA Mark 1A and 114 Medium Fighter aircraft. The AMCA is a fifth generation jet which the DRDO is developing.

"We have ruled out the possibility of a foreign FGFA (fifth generation fighter aircraft) now or in the near future. And the IAF Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft requirement will be indigenous," Bhadauria clarified. India and Russia have been working on a joint project to develop FGFA since 2007. Both sides had signed only a preliminary $295 million design contract for the co-development of the FGFA in 2010.

"Indigenisation and modernisation will be the key pillars. We have to ensure that indigenous products remain the focus and we will work to reduce dependency on foreign equipment," Bhadauria, who took over as the IAF chief on September 30, said.

On the issue of indigenous trainer jet, the air force chief maintained that the HTT-40 trainer jets, designed and developed by HAL, will soon join the IAF.

"HTT-40 trainer jets will certainly join the IAF very soon. We have dropped the plan to procure 38 more Pilatus (Switzerland firm) training aircraft. Next induction of trainer jets in Air Force will be HTT-40.”

On the recent issue of small drones being used by Pakistan to drop weapons on the Indian side, the IAF chief said that "small drones are a new threat and some procurements are already in process to tackle the issue. It is a space violation issue and necessary action has been initiated in this aspect."

Meanwhile, the IAF chief termed the Mi-17 chopper crash in Srinagar on February 27 in a friendly fire as a 'big mistake'.

"A Court of Inquiry into the accident has completed last week and it was our mistake as our missile had hit our own chopper. Disciplinary action will be taken against two officers involved in the crash. We accept this was our big mistake and we will ensure such mistakes are not repeated in future," Bhadauria said, while adding that on the same day Pakistan Air Force lost an F-16 and India a MiG-21 in the aerial engagement.

Asked about the impact of Balakot airstrike amid reports of revival of terror camps in the same vicinity, Bhadauria said, "The range and level of terror attacks from Pakistan would have been different if Balakot terror strike by the Indian Air Force was not happened."

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