India sends 4 Rafales for French wargames

NEW DELHI: India on Friday dispatched four Rafale fighters, two C-17 GlobemasterIII strategic airlifters, two IL-78 mid-air refuellers and 165 personnel to take part in a multi-nation air combat exercise in France.
The ongoing Orion exercise, the air component of which will be conducted at Mont-de-Marsan from April 17 to May 5, will also witness the participation of the air forces of the US, United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain and Netherlands.
“This would be the first overseas exercise for the Indian Rafale jets. Participation in the Orion exercise would further enrich the employment philosophy of the IAF by imbibing the best practices from other air forces,” IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Ashish Moghe said.
The Orion exercise is one of the largest-ever wargames hosted by France, and also involves land and sea drills with thousands of Nato troops at a time when tensions continue to run high in Europe due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
India and the US are already conducting their major bilateral “Cope India” air mobility and combat exercise at the Kalaikunda air base in West Bengal, with Japan also taking part as an “observer” in the wargames. The IAF has fielded the Rafale, Sukhoi-30MKI and indigenous Tejas fighters as well as AEW&C (airborne early-warning and control) planes, C-17 Globemaster-III strategic airlift aircraft and IL-78 mid-air refuellers operating from air bases like Kalaikunda, Panagarh and Agra for the exercise.
The US has deployed two B-1 supersonic heavy bombers for the first time for the combat manoeuvers, apart from F-15 Strike Eagle fighters, C-130 and C-17 aircraft.