Three more Rafale fighter aircrafts arrived at the Jamnagar airbase in Gujarat from France on Wednesday, 4 November, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said.
“The second batch of Rafale aircraft arrived in India at 8:14 pm today after flying non-stop from France,” the IAF said in a statement.
“The three Rafale fighter aircraft took off from a French airbase and reached India after three mid-air refuelling en route. The aircraft took over 8 hours to reach directly from France, showcasing the long-range operational capability of the Air Force,” it stated.
The jets are expected to reach Ambala after a one-day break at Jamnagar, according to Hindustan Times.
According to the report, the IAF is expecting to receive three to four Rafale jets every two months, till all 36 are finally here.
A team, led by a two-star officer, was in France in October to review the progress of the Rafale project.
The Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C) Western Air Command, Air Marshal B Suresh, had welcomed the first five IAF Rafales, which had arrived at Air Force Station in Ambala on 29 July.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had then taken to Twitter to congratulate the IAF and Dassault Aviation, and said that the IAF’s capability has gotten a “timely boost.”
Rafale is a 4.5 generation aircraft and has latest weapons, superior sensors and fully integrated architecture.
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