In what appears to be a significant step towards enhancing its aerial warfare capacity, the Indian Ministry of Defense (MoD) has now formally submitted an official Letter of Request (LoR) to the Government of France requesting procurement of 114 Rafale fighter aircraft. The big bilateral deal, valued at around ₹3.25 lakh crore ($39 billion USD), is set to counter the consistent decrease in the fighter squadron strength of the Indian Air Force (IAF).
As per information obtained from officials, the LoR was formally sent last week by the MoD’s acquisition cell. Key defense officials have stated that the Indian government is quite confident about signing the business deal during the fiscal year of 2026-27. One of the key aspects of the big acquisition deal is its compatibility with New Delhi’s “Make in India” policy.
While the earlier deal of acquiring 36 Rafales in fly-away condition was entirely different, the new one emphasizes Indian domestic manufacturing more. In the suggested plan of action, French aerospace company Dassault Aviation will supply approximately 18 to 22 aircraft from their French factories.
Of these, 92-94 aircraft will be manufactured completely within the country through the strategic cooperation of Dassault and an Indian aerospace company, ensuring more than 50% indigenization. The acquisition of aircraft is strategically timed. Air Chief Marshal AP Singh is on a four-day visit to France for the purpose of inspecting manufacturing plants, whereas the Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to make his way to France this month to attend the G7 summit.
At present, IAF possesses about 30 squadrons against the sanctioned number of 42.5 to deal with a two-front situation. The introduction of 114 state-of-the-art 4.5 generation Rafale fighter jets will prove to be a game changer in this regard.
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