Seeking to finalize the acquisition of 114 new Rafale fighters to reinforce its fleets, India is finalizing details with France to close a definitive agreement this year that would require an investment of more than 325 billion rupees, including clauses allowing the local military-industrial complex to contribute up to 30% of the components that will form part of each aircraft. In addition, officials in New Delhi have told local media that the agreement would include between 12 and 18 ready-to-fly aircraft, which would help speed up the process of incorporating the jets into the Air Force.
Expanding on these details, reports from India also point to the possibility that the Ministry of Defence may seek to push for the integration of locally developed weapons and sensors into the Rafale’s arsenal, which would require authorization from France as the supplier, as it is the only party that holds the necessary source codes. If this point were to be achieved, New Delhi would be closer to fulfilling its “Made in India” policy, which traditionally seeks to advance processes that include between 50% and 60% local components, rather than the 30% achieved so far.
At the same time, it is important to note that the French manufacturer Dassault has already announced plans to establish a maintenance center on Indian soil (specifically in Hyderabad) for the M-88 engines that power the Rafale, one of the factors strengthening the fighter’s candidacy in the selection process. In this regard, the company has already set up a firm to carry out this work, while it has been reported that other local industrial players could also be involved in the project, notably Tata.
It should also be recalled that the Rafale’s candidacy benefits from the fact that India already operates this type of fighter in its combat fleets, with 36 aircraft in service with the Air Force, and orders placed for another 26 by the Navy to equip the aircraft carriers INS Vikrant and INS Vikramaditya. Should the acquisition of the additional 114 units go ahead, the country could end up with a total fleet of 176 Rafales at the end of the process, making it one of the world’s main operators of the platform. The final decision will rest with the Cabinet Committee on Security.
Finally, it should be noted that India is under pressure to accelerate the acquisition of new aircraft to form additional fighter squadrons, especially considering that it currently fields only 29 squadrons compared to the 42 required by its strategic planning, a shortfall exacerbated by the recent retirement of its obsolete MiG-21s. In this context, the arrival of the Rafales would reinforce the existing inventory of Su-30MKI fighters, while the country is also awaiting the delivery of another 180 LCA Tejas Mk.1A aircraft ordered from local manufacturers. Moreover, India is moving toward the development of the AMCA, a fifth-generation aircraft that is also the product of indigenous development.
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