Before the month of July comes to an end, the Indian Air Force (IAF) expects delivery of its first five of 36 Dassault Rafale multirole fighter jets, according to a 20 July statement by the Ministry of Defense (MoD) in New Delhi.
The fighter jets are expected to be received at Ambala Air Force Station (AFS) in northern India on 29 July subject to the weather. MoD also noted that no media coverage is planned on the arrival of the aircraft.
The final induction ceremony will take place in the second half of August. France’s Dassault Aviation in October 2019 released images of the second of 36 Rafale aircraft ordered for the IAF in September 2016.
IAF aircrew and ground crew have already completed a comprehensive training on the aircraft, including its highly advanced weapon systems, and are fully operational now
India ordered 36 Rafales in 2016 for EUR7.9 billion (USD9.04 billion) and took delivery of the first of these fighters in a ceremony held in France in October 2019.
