Rafale Jets Induction LIVE Updates: Rafale Induction 'Big & Strong' Message to Those Eyeing Our Sovereignty, Says Rajnath Singh as Jets Join IAF

The 17 Squadron ‘Golden Arrows’ has many firsts to its credit; in 1955 it was equipped with the first jet fighter, the legendary De Havilland Vampire.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh presents a memento to French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parley, at the Rafale induction ceremony in Ambala airbase. (Photo: ANI)

“The India-France friendship is rock solid and is time-tested. It based on commanality and trust… Today I warmly congratulate all the people on both sides who put in their heart and soul into making the induction ceremony possible,” Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly at Ambala airbase.

“Make in India has been a reality for French industries for several years, particularly for defence equipments…But this is not only a military or industrial project. There is bubble of friendship,” Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly said at Ambala airbase.

India’s Motive Behind Strength of Defence Has Been Desire for World Peace: Rajnath Singh | “Our motive behind the strength of defence has always been the desire for world peace. In this way, our country will not take any such step which can disturb the peace anywhere. We expect the same from our neighbors, and the rest of the world,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at Ambala airbase.

Rafale Induction Represents Strong Ties Between India & France: Rajnath Singh |The induction of Rafale into IAF also represents the strong ties between India and France. The strategic ties between our two countries have also strengthened: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at Ambala airbase. 

“Many obstacles came in the way….But given the prime minister's strong will, our resolve became strong, and our path was paved. This is the result of his visionary vision that we are seeing today flourishing,” Rajnath Singh at the induction ceremony of Rafale jets in Ambala.

India-France Committed to Principles of 'Liberty', 'Equality', 'Fraternity' and 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' | “Both of us are also committed to strengthening the universal principles of 'Liberty', 'Equality', 'Fraternity' and 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' and, spreading it all over the world,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

“There is a special strategic partnership between India and France, which is steadily strengthening over time. After India's independence, vibrant defence cooperation has developed between our India and France,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh speaks at the induction ceremony of Rafale fighter jets.

Rajnath Singh Begins Address | “Today, at the 'Rafale' induction ceremony, I warmly welcome the Defense Minister of France, Florence Parley, on behalf of myself and the countrymen. Your presence in this event reflects our strong defence partnership that has been going on for years,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh during the induction ceremony of Rafale jets at Ambala airbase. 

Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria expressed deep appreciation for the French Air Force for their support. He also expressed thanks to the dignitaries present at the event and to the Golden Arrows squadron. He added that he expects Golden Arrows to dominate whenever deployed.

Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria Begins Address | Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria has begun his address at the official induction ceremony of Rafale jets at Ambala airbase. He termed the day "historic" for the Indian Air Force. 

Water Cannon Salute Given to 5 Rafale Jets |Seen here, water cannon salute given to the five Rafale fighter aircraft at Ambala airbase in Haryana. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is in Ambala along with his French counterpart Florence Parly for the formal induction of the first batch of five fighter jets.

India chose Dassault Rafale over Lockheed Martin’s F-16 used by Pakistan Air Force, Boeing’s F/A-18, Eurofighter Typhoon, Russia’s MiG-35 and Sweden’s Saab Gripen.

Rafale Specifications: The Rafale is a modern fighter jet known for its agility, speed, weapon holding capacity and attack capability. The Dassault Rafale has a delta wing design and is capable of g-forces as high as 11g (in case of emergency). The Rafale is available in both single and dual seating cabin (India ordered 28 single and 8 dual seater Rafale). The Rafale is 15.27 metre long and a wingspan of 10.80 metre. The empty weight of Rafale ranges from 9900 kg to 10600 kg depending on the variant and maximum take-off weight of 24500 kg. The Rafale is powered by two SNECMA M88 engines, each capable of providing up to 50 kilonewtons (11,000 pounds-force) of dry thrust and 75 kN (17,000 pounds-force) with afterburners. The engines push the Rafale to attain a high speed of 1.8 Mach (1912 kmph) and a range of more than 3700 km with 3 drop tanks.

Importance of Rafale |After the Indian Air Force struck a Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Balakot in February this year, Prime Minister Modi said, "Rafale fighters could have delivered even better results". His reference was apparently to the stealth of Rafale, an air-dominance aircraft manufactured by French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation. Since India was waiting for deliveries of Rafale when the attacks happened, the Indian Air Force deployed a dozen Mirage-2000 aircraft, made by the same company to hit the targets. Rafale is a Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) that is said to boost India’s air dominance exponentially, currently safeguarded by fighter jets like Russia made Sukhoi Su-30MKI and MiG 29, along with French Mirage-2000 and indigenously built HAL Tejas.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly witness air display of Rafale fighter aircraft in Ambala flanked by SU-30 and Jaguar aircraft in arrow formation.Before arriving in Punjab, the France's minister of armed forces received a ceremonial Guard of Honour at Delhi. (Photo: ANI)

General VK Singh (retd.), Minister of State, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, and former Chief of Army Staff welcomed the Rafale jets. “Welcome the new Big Bad Boys of the sky. #Rafale #GenerallySaying,” he wrote on Twitter.

Welcome the new Big Bad Boys of the sky. #Rafale #GenerallySaying pic.twitter.com/QWywuw5XSZ

— Vijay Kumar Singh (@Gen_VKSingh) September 10, 2020

Rajnath Singh, French Counterpart Attend 'Sarva Dharma Puja' | Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly, witness the traditional 'Sarva Dharma Puja' at the Rafale induction ceremony, at Ambala airbase. (Photo: ANI)

As The Indian Air Force formally inducts the Rafale aircraft on Thursday into the 17 Squadron ‘Golden Arrows’, here's a look at the Ambala-based squadron that will fly these fighter jets. The 17 Squadron has many firsts to its credit; in 1955 it was equipped with the first jet fighter, the legendary De Havilland Vampire. The Golden Arrows has also operated a range of aircrafts such as Harvard- II B from 1951 to 1955. Between 1955 to 1957, it flew the De Havilland Vampire. It operated the Hawker Hunter from 1957-1975 and MIG-21 from 1975-2016.

The new fleet will be part of the 17 Squadron of the IAF which was resurrected on September 10 last year. The squadron was originally raised at Air Force Station, Ambala on Oct 1 1951. The 17 Squadron has many firsts to its credit; in 1955 it was equipped with the first jet fighter, the legendary De Havilland Vampire.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh & Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly Reach Indian Air Force Station, Ambala | Haryana: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of the Armed Forces of France Florence Parly arrive at the Indian Air Force Station, Ambala, for the Rafale induction ceremony. Notably, the first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore. (Photo: ANI)

The Rafale Saga: Delayed Timelines, Cost Escalation and An Executive Decision |Six companies shortlisted during the RFI process were issued the RFP for the procurement of 126 MMRCA of which 18 aircraft were to procured in “fly away condition” and the balance 108 were to be built by Hindustan Aeronautical Limited (HAL) under transfer of technology (TOT). These were Dassault Aviation (France) for Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon (multinational), RAC-MiG (Russia) for the MiG 35 Fulcrum, SAAB International (Sweden) for JAS39 Gripen, Boeing (USA) for F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin (USA) for the F-16 IN Super Viper.  By April 2011, two bids had been shortlisted for the purchase of MMRCA—Dassault Aviation for its Rafale and Eurofighter for its Typhoon. The final bids made by both were opened on 4 November 2011 and on 31 January and Dassault Rafale was selected for exclusive negotiations. READ FULL STORY HERE.

File to Flight: Meet the Ambassadors Who Were Key to Signing of Rafale Deal | As the Rafale aircrafts soared into the skies in Bordeaux in July, India’s ambassador to France Jawed Ashraf was at the Merignac airport to say bon voyage.  A 1991-batch IFS officer, Ashraf had taken charge as India's envoy to France about two weeks ago on July 13. His counterpart in India, Ambassador Emmanuel Lenain, congratulated him. In April 2015, when the Prime Minister Modi visited Paris and announced that India would acquire 36 Rafale jets in fly-away condition, the Foreign Service Officer, Ashraf, was in the PMO. In fact, he transitioned from Manmohan Singh's tenure to the Modi tenure in the PMO. Read full story here. 

A Modern Fighter Jet Known for its Agility & Speed | The Rafale jets are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 year after the Sukhoi jets were imported from Russia.  Also known as Flanker (NATO), the Su-30 MKI is built in India by HAL under a license agreement with Russia’s Sukhoi. The Su-30MKI is exclusively used by India and there’s an estimate that IAF has 290 operational units of 30MKI till now. The first unit was inducted in 2002. The Rafale is a modern fighter jet known for its agility, speed, weapon holding capacity and attack capability. The Dassault Rafale has a delta wing design and is capable of g-forces as high as 11g (in case of emergency). The Rafale is available in both single and dual seating cabin (India ordered 28 single and 8 dual seater Rafale).

The five Rafale aircraft to be formally inducted in 17 Squadron 'Golden Arrows' of the Indian Air Force, at Ambala airbase Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of Armed Forces of France Florence Parly to take part in the induction ceremony. Active fighter jets used by the Indian Air Force range from Sukhoi Su-30MKI to the Tejas LCA and now, the Rafale.

Haryana: The five #Rafale aircraft to be formally inducted in 17 Squadron 'Golden Arrows' of the Indian Air Force, at Ambala airbase

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of Armed Forces of France Florence Parly to take part in the induction ceremony pic.twitter.com/n5PlCUTXtw

— ANI (@ANI) September 10, 2020

How Effective Would IAF’s Latest Fighter Jet Be in a Two-Front War | Rafale’s induction will change the technological imbalance India had in air vis-à-vis Pakistan’s US-supplied F16 aircrafts with superior radar and missile system as well as China-supplied Chengdu JF-17, which is at the centre of Pakistani Air Force’s fleet modernisation plans. Of the three, Chinese J-20 is the heaviest with empty weight of over 19,000 kg and maximum take-off weight of 37,013 kg, according to open source information. The empty weight of Rafale ranges from 9900 kg to 10600 kg depending on the variant and a maximum take-off weight of 24500 kg. JF-17 on the other hand is much lighter, weighing around 6,411kg with maximum take-off weight of 12,474 kg. This means both Rafale and J-20 are capable of carrying more fuel and weapons per flight compared to JF-17.

The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore. During her visit to the national capital, paid floral tributes to India's valiant soldiers at the National War Memorial.

Rafale vs China’s J-20 vs Pak’s JF-17 | Both Chinese JF-17 currently used by PAF and Chengdu J-20 used by China are multi-role combat fighter aircraft (MRCA) meaning aircraft intended to perform various day/night roles during combat. China claims JF-17 Thunder is a fourth-generation aircraft and the J-20 is a fifth-generation machine. The task assigned to these aircraft could be multiple, including air-to-air attack, air-to-surface attack, aerial reconnaissance, interception, suppression of enemy air defence, anti-ship strikes and nuclear deterrence. Dassault’s Rafale, due to its state-of-the-art technology, has been classified as a 4.5 generation aircraft. It is claimed to be an "omnirole" fighter, a tag that points to the aircraft’s abilities to “go beyond the needs of each type of mission’. READ FULL STORY HERE

Singh and Parly Leave for Ambala | Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of Armed Forces of France Florence Parly leave for Ambala to take part in Rafale induction ceremony. The fleet, comprising three single seater and two twin seater aircraft, are being inducted into the IAF as part of its Ambala-based No 17 Squadron, also known as the 'Golden Arrows.'