Published 20:20 IST, July 29th 2020
'Golden Arrows reach home': IAF chief Bhadauria welcomes fiery Rafale jets at Ambala base
In a major boost to India's defence arsenal, the Indian Air Force received the first five Rafale Jets on Wednesday after taking off from Bordeaux on Monday
In a major boost to India's defence arsenal, the Indian Air Force received the first five Rafale Jets on Wednesday. The French-made Rafale jets were welcomed by Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Air Command, Air Marshal B Suresh at the Ambala airbase. The jets took off from the Merignac airbase in French port city of Bordeaux on Monday and arrived here after covering a distance of 7,000 km with air-to-air refuelling and a single stop in the United Arab Emirates.
Defence Minister welcomes Rafales
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh welcomed India's powerful new entrants and also thanked the French Government and Dassault Aviation for ensuring timely delivery amid the pandemic. The Raksha Mantri highlighted that the aircraft has 'very good flying performance' and that its weapons, radar and other sensors and Electronic Warfare capabilities are amongst the best in the world. "Its arrival in India will make the IAF much stronger to deter any threat that may be posed on our country," Singh tweeted.
PM Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, too welcomed the Rafale jets as he shared a Sanskrit couplet lauding the new defence entrants. Highlighting their added value to Indian airforce's defence prowess, PM Modi said welcomed the jets which will protect Indian skies. Similarly, Home Minister Amit Shah too welcomed the five jets which landed at Haryana's Ambala airbase after a 2-day journey from France.
India's Rafale airpower
The first fleet of five jets comprises three single-seater and two twin-seater aircraft arrived in India nearly four years after the two countries inked an inter-governmental agreement to supply 36 of the multi-role jets to the Indian Air Force (IAF) under a Rs 59,000-crore deal. All 36 jets are expected to arrive in India by September 2022, for which the IAF has been reportedly undertaking preparations, including readying the required infrastructure and training of pilots.
Updated 20:21 IST, July 29th 2020