4 RAFALES TO LAND INDIA BY JULY –END

4 RAFALES TO LAND IN INDIA BY JULY –END

First batch of four Rafael fighter jets is scheduled to arrive in India in the last week of July amid continuing tensions on the border with China

Four aircraft are scheduled to depart from France on July 27 and fly to India with a stopover at the Al Dhafra air base in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Dassault Rafale  is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation

Rafael is intended to perform air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike and nuclear deterrence missions

Rafael was developed as a modern jet fighter with a very high level of agility

Rafael is referred to as an "omnirole" aircraft by Dassault

Dassault built a technology demonstrator which first flew in July 1986 as part of an eight-year flight-test programme 

Originally scheduled to enter service in 1996, the Rafale suffered significant delays due to post-Cold War budget cuts and changes in priorities

Introduced in 2001, the Rafael is being produced for both the French Air Force and for carrier-based operations in the French Navy

In May 2010, a Rafael flew for the first time with the M88-4E engine, an upgraded variant with greater thrust and lower maintenance requirements than the preceding M88-2

Dassault describes the OSF as being immune to jamming and capable of providing covert long-range surveillance. In 2012, an improved version of the OSF was deployed operationally

Rafael was designed for a reduced radar cross-section (RCS) and infrared signature

 

Rafael core avionics systems employ an integrated modular avionics (IMA), called MDPU (modular data processing unit). This architecture hosts all the main aircraft functions such as the flight management system, data fusion, fire control, and the man-machine interface

Rafael is an aerodynamically unstable aircraft and uses digital fly-by-wire flight controls to artificially enforce and maintain stability

France was the sole developer of the Rafael’s airframe, avionics, propulsion system and armament

 

Rafale features an integrated defensive-aids system named SPECTRA, which protects the aircraft against airborne and ground threats, developed as a joint venture between Thales and MBDA

Rafael was first outfitted with the Thales RBE2 passive electronically scanned multi-mode radar

Aircraft is available in three main variants: Rafael C single-seat land-based version, Rafael B twin-seat land-based version, and Rafael M single-seat carrier-based version

Rafael has been marketed for export to several countries, and was selected for purchase by the Indian Air Force, the Egyptian Air Force, and the Qatar Air Force.