3 more Rafale jets arrive

IAF has now 20 of 36 fighters contracted from France

May 05, 2021 05:38 pm | Updated 09:39 pm IST - NEW DELHI

The fighters will fly a distance of almost 8,000 km with air-to-air refuelling support by the French Air Force and the UAE Air Force. File

The fighters will fly a distance of almost 8,000 km with air-to-air refuelling support by the French Air Force and the UAE Air Force. File

The sixth batch of three Rafale fighter jets arrived in India on Wednesday. With this, the IAF has received 20 of the 36 jets contracted from France.

Last month, during a five-day visit to France, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria flagged off the fifth batch of three jets from the Merignac air base. The fifth ferry marked the end of training of the third batch of pilots and maintenance crew, ACM Bhadauria said then.

Also read: Rafale jets | The 'game-changer' fighters

The first Rafale squadron, the No.17 Golden Arrows, based at Ambala is complete and the second squadron is based at Hasimara in West Bengal. The fighters flew almost 8,000 km with air-to-air refuelling support.

Also read: Four more Rafale jets arrive in India

Last September, the IAF inducted the first batch of five Rafales under a €7.87-billion Inter-Governmental Agreement signed in September 2016 with 13 India Specific Enhancements (ISE).

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