Sixth batch of 3 Rafale jets leave for India

With the 3 Rafales arriving from France today, the Indian Air Force (IAF) will have 20 Rafales in service

The 6th batch of three Rafale fighter jets departed from France on May 5 and will arrive in India later in the evening. With these, the Indian Air Force (IAF) will have 20 Rafales in service.

Last month, during a five-day visit to France, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria flagged off the 5th batch of three jets from the Merignac air base. The 5th ferry marks the end of training of third batch of pilots and all maintenance crew, ACM Bhadauria said then.

The first Rafale squadron of the IAF, the No.17 Golden Arrows, based at Ambala is complete and the second squadron is based at Hasimara in West Bengal.

The fighters will fly a distance of almost 8,000 km with air-to-air refuelling support by the French Air Force and the UAE Air Force.

Last September, the IAF inducted the first batch of five Rafales of the 36 jets contracted from France under a €7.87 billion Inter-Governmental Agreement signed in September 2016 with 13 India Specific Enhancements (ISE).

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