Rafale Jets - All you need to know

India received the first batch of five Rafale jets from France on 29th July, 2020 which landed at Ambala Air Force station. 

  • The first batch of Rafale jets included five aircrafts: 3 single-seater, 2 twin-seater.
  • They were flown by Indian Air Force pilots from Merignac airbase near Bordeaux in France to Ambala airbase in India with short a halt at Al Dhafra French air base near UAE's Abu Dabhi.
  • All 36 jets to be delivered by 2021.

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Rafale Deal:

India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France's Dassault Aviation in 2016 to purchase 36 Rafale jets at an estimated costs of Rs 58,000 crore.


Rafale Specifications:

1) Dimensions: 
  • Wing span: 10.90 m
  • Length: 15.30 m
  • Height: 5.30 m

2) Weight:
  • Overall empty weight: 10 tonnes
  • External load: 9.5 tonnes
  • Max. take-off weight: 24.5 tonnes
  • Fuel (internal): 4.7 tonnes
  • Fuel (external): up to 6.7 tonnes

3) Performance:
  • Ferry Range: 3,700 km
  • Top Speed: 1.8 Mach at high altitude
  • Landing ground run: 450 m (1,500 ft)
  • Service ceiling: 50,000 ft


Details about Rafale Jets:

1)  Manufactured by:  
  • France's Dassault Aviation
  • Rafale entered service with the French Navy in 2004 and with the French Air Force in 2006.
2) 4.5 Generation combat aircraft

3) Top Speed = 1.8 Mach
  • It can reach almost double the speed of sound, with a top speed of 1.8 Mach.

4) Multi-role capabilities
  • electronic warfare, 
  • air defence, 
  • air supremacy, 
  • interdiction, 
  • aerial reconnaissance,
  • close air support
  • ground support 
  • in-depth strikes
  • anti-ship strike
  • nuclear deterrence missions
5) Each aircraft has 14 storage stations for weapons.

6) Weapons:
  • Meteor, Scalp, Mica, Hammer
a) METEOR

Rafale come with Meteor, an advanced Air-to-Air missile system
  • 190-kg missile has a Beyond Visual Range (BVR) of over 100 km.
  • Top Speed = Mach 4
  • The weapon has been developed by MBDA to combat common threats facing the UK, Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Sweden.

The F16 jets, used by Pakistan, carry the AMRAAM missile, which has a BVR of 75 km. Rafale can also outperform F16 in dogfights.


b) SCALP

Rafale jets also come with SCALP.
  • Air-to-ground cruise missile
  • Range >300 km. 
  • It is a long-range deep strike missile.

c) MICA
  • MICA is an air-to-air missile fitted on Rafale 
  • Used for both, close-quarter dogfights, and for BVR.

d) HAMMER

India has also asked for HAMMER (Highly Agile and Manoeuvrable Munition Extended Range)
  • Air-to-ground precision guided missile
  • Missile produced by French conglomerate Safran
  • Can be used against bunker-type hardened targets within the range of 70 km.


7) Indian specific modifications:
  • Israeli helmet-mounted displays, 
  • radar warning receivers, 
  • low-band jammers, 
  • 10-hour flight data recording, 
  • infra-red search and tracking systems

Are all 5 Rafale jets same?

The first batch of Rafale jets included five aircrafts :
  • 3 single-seater jets
  • 2 twin-seater jets
  • Initials of name:
The twin-seater air planes have the current Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria’s initials "RB".

The single-seater aircraft have the initials of the last chief of Air Force, retired Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa.


When will all the aircrafts delivered by France?

The first fighter jet was handed over to the Indian Air Force in October 2019, in France, in a ceremony attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and French Minister for Armed Forces Florence Parly.

Ten aircraft have been delivered on schedule. Of these ten, five have left for India, while the other five will remain in France for training missions.

All 36 jets to be delivered by 2021.


Rafale aircrafts will join which Squadron? 

The first five Rafale jets are inducted into Number 17 Golden Arrows squadron of the Indian Air Force.

The Golden Arrows were raised in 1951 and have been involved in a number of significant operations through their history, including the Kargil War. 

But after the Air Force started to phase out the Mig-21, which were operated by the Golden Arrows, the squadron was disbanded in 2016. It has been resurrected now for the multi-role, state-of-the-art Rafale.



Is Rafale superior to China's J20 Chengdu?

While China’s J20 Chengdu jets are called fifth generation combat jets, compared to 4.5 generation Rafale, the J20 have no actual combat experience.

Whereas the Rafale is combat proven, having been used by the French Air Force for its missions in Afghanistan, Libya and Mali. 

It has also been used for missions in Central African Republic, Iraq and Syria. Rafale can also carry more fuel and weapons than the J20.


Rafale's comparison to US's F-35

In comparison to F-35, Rafale jet is more agile as it has long-endurance to fly at a higher speed while carrying a range of weapons for a longer period of time. 

However, the F-35 scores much ahead of Rafales in terms of on board avionics and electronic warfare systems.


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