Race begins for sale of 110 combat jets to IAF

Each of the six aviation majors that participated in the first competition 10 years ago, are back in a new race to grab a hugely lucrative Indian deal of selling 110 fighter aircraft to Indian Air Force as the deadline for their responses ended on Friday.

USA's Boeing (F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III) and Lockheed Martin (F-16 Block 70), Swedish Saab (Gripen E), Russian United Aircraft Corporation (MiG-35), French Dassault Aviation (Rafale) and Airbus (Eurofighter Typhoon) responded to the IAF's request for information issued in April.

“All of them responded to the RFI. Now IAF headquarters will frame Air Staff Qualitative Requirement, which may take few months,” said a source.

The previous exercise – an open tender to buy 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft came to nought after ten years of trials and tribulations. The Congress-led UPA government couldn't conclude the deal with Dassault Aviation that won the competition.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in April 2015 announced the purchase of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft from France to make up for the IAF's fast losing squadron strength.

Sources told DH this time the ASQR would be slightly less stringent to allow more firms to be shortlisted in the first round so that the final price became more competitive. Last time only Dassault and Eurofighter made the first cut from which the French firm was selected finally.

In the previous MMRCA competition, each of the aircraft was tested on 600 points. They were also flown in desert and high-altitude conditions. The entire process took several months.

This time, the trials are likely to be quicker as the focus would be more to test the new avionics and electronic warfare suits that came in the last 10 years as the characteristics of the air frame and engines are already known to Indian experts.

Successive IAF chiefs and others in the top brass had repeatedly flagged their concerns on the dwindling squadron strength.

Deposing before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence earlier this year, IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal S B Deo stated, “The force has 31 squadrons but there is a gap in the force level since induction and de-induction was not commensurate.”

Out of the 31 squadrons, nearly 10 squadrons are vintage MiG aircraft, which are being phased out. While the first Rafale is expected in 2019, only two squadrons of the French fighters are not good enough to make up for the deficiency.