Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will formally induct the newly arrived five Rafale fighter jets into the IAF on September 10. His French counterpart Florency Parly is also likely to be part of the event besides holding bilateral talks on further enhancing defence ties between the two countries.
The first batch of five Rafale jets, manufactured by French aerospace major Dassault Aviation, arrived at the Ambala air base on July 29. The jets are yet to be formally inducted into the IAF. Defence Minister, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and the entire top military brass of the country will attend the event at the Ambala air base, sources said here on Friday.
India had signed an inter-governmental agreement with France in September 2016 for procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore.
Out of the 36 Rafale jets, 30 will be fighter jets and six will be trainers. The trainer jets will be twin-seater and they will have almost all the features of the fighter jets. While the first squadron of the Rafale jets will be stationed at the Ambala air base, the second one will be based at the Hasimara base in West Bengal. All the 36 jets will be in the IAF by 2022.