Know Your 'Rafale'

[arnabmit]

India, France to discuss MMRCA deal, but no signing yet

Negotiations on the $10 billion deal for purchase of 126 French Rafale jets for the IAF will be high on the agenda during talks between Defence Minister A.K. Antony and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian here Friday but no contract is due to be signed.

Le Drian, who is visiting India on the invitation of Antony, is arriving on a three-day visit.French firm Dassault Aviation bagged the deal for 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) last year after being declared the lowest bidder, piping EAD's Eurofighter.

While terming the deal "the most important tender in defence history", a reliable source said Thursday that there was "no target" for the negotiations to be concluded.

No contract for the MMRCA deal would be signed during the minister's visit, the source said, adding that the contract would come "in due course depending on the speed of the negotiations".

No time lines have been stressed, the source said.

The MMRCA deal is "complicated" and the contract has "technicalities and legal issues" including offsets and supply chain to be worked out, the source said, adding that France is "confident" of the deal being concluded.

Eighteen of the 126 planes are to be purchased directly from Dassault, while Hindustan Aeronatics Limited (HAL) is to manufacture the other 108 under a licence at a facility in Bangalore.

It will be Le Drian's second visit to India. He will also visit the Indian Air Force station at Gwalior, to see the French Mirage 2000s being used by the IAF and discuss its upgradation, estimated at Rs.11,000 crore.

He would also interact with pilots, officers and technicians who fly and maintain the fleet.

Le Drian is expected to brief Antony about the French perspective on the global security scenario. Sources said such a briefing has been held by France only for two countries – Britain and the US.

He will present France White Paper on Defence and also give a lecture at the Institute for Defence and Security Analyses (IDSA) Friday on "Indo-French Defence Partnership: the Choice of Strategic Autonomy".

He will also meet industrialists of the defence sector, members of the French community, and exchange views on global threats and current international issues with high-profile Indian researchers and scholars, as well as Members of Parliament.

 

[halloweene]

Kh 31 will be integrated to indian rafales (Air & Cosmos).
Manu pubby quoting le drian : Gov warranty on rafale deal. Positive issue soon.

 

[Abhijeet Dey]

Germany still hopes to win IAF fighter deal: Missfelder
The Statesman, 26 Jul 2013

Germany today said it is still hopeful of India giving in to the Eurofighter jet over the French Rafael and that it is not giving up in trying to convince the Indian government of why the Eurofighter would be a better deal for India. This was stated by Mr Philipp Missfelder, a member of the German Bundestag and the foreign policy spokesperson for the Fraction of the Christian Democrats, in an exclusive interview to The Statesman.

Last year, Eurofighter lost out to Rafael for India's $10 billion MMRCA contract. But Mr Missfelder said even though the French offer does exist and that France is a reliable country, "the problems in the details are evident". He also said the industry sector in France has "massive problems".

He confessed that Germany is "very worried about the situation in Afghanistan. Mr Karzai is ruling Kabul and not the whole of Afghanistan". Taking a highly critical view of Pakistan's role in the regional politics, Mr. Missfelder said one of the goals of going to Afghanistan was to find Osama bin Laden who was finally found in Pakistan. He candidly admitted that a larger role for Pakistan in Afghanistan in a post 2014 scenario "could cause a bigger challenge".

Mr Missfelder said he is not in favour of a bipolar world and a multi-polar world makes more sense. "The currency debates sometimes make us think that this is a G2 world," he said with reference to the domination of the Dollar and the Yen in the world markets and said this "is not good for us".
With reference to China's recent aggression in the South China Sea and the conflict with Japan over the Senkaku islands, Mr Missfelder feels that "China is testing the limits." He also said the growing nationalism in China is not a good sign and like many other countries, China, too, might be to blame its domestic problems on someone outside.

Germany is also headed to elections in September this year with Chancellor Merkel's party expected to return to power with a thin majority, according to polls. The issue of Turkey becoming a member of the European Union has been dragging its feet for a while now and some have said Chancellor Merkel wanted to keep the Turkey question out of the debate to avoid any domestic repercussions. However, Mr Missfelder said said Germany needs Turkey as a "strategic partner".

Mr Missfelder said India and Germany share a good bilateral relationship and he hopes that this relationship would expand in the future.

 

[Abhijeet Dey]

Germany still hopes to win IAF fighter deal: Missfelder
The Statesman, 26 Jul 2013

Germany today said it is still hopeful of India giving in to the Eurofighter jet over the French Rafale and that it is not giving up in trying to convince the Indian government of why the Eurofighter would be a better deal for India. This was stated by Mr Philipp Missfelder, a member of the German Bundestag and the foreign policy spokesperson for the Fraction of the Christian Democrats, in an exclusive interview to The Statesman.

Last year, Eurofighter lost out to Rafael for India's $10 billion MMRCA contract. But Mr Missfelder said even though the French offer does exist and that France is a reliable country, "the problems in the details are evident". He also said the industry sector in France has "massive problems".

He confessed that Germany is "very worried about the situation in Afghanistan. Mr Karzai is ruling Kabul and not the whole of Afghanistan". Taking a highly critical view of Pakistan's role in the regional politics, Mr. Missfelder said one of the goals of going to Afghanistan was to find Osama bin Laden who was finally found in Pakistan. He candidly admitted that a larger role for Pakistan in Afghanistan in a post 2014 scenario "could cause a bigger challenge".

Mr Missfelder said he is not in favour of a bipolar world and a multi-polar world makes more sense. "The currency debates sometimes make us think that this is a G2 world," he said with reference to the domination of the Dollar and the Yen in the world markets and said this "is not good for us".
With reference to China's recent aggression in the South China Sea and the conflict with Japan over the Senkaku islands, Mr Missfelder feels that "China is testing the limits." He also said the growing nationalism in China is not a good sign and like many other countries, China, too, might be to blame its domestic problems on someone outside.

Germany is also headed to elections in September this year with Chancellor Merkel's party expected to return to power with a thin majority, according to polls. The issue of Turkey becoming a member of the European Union has been dragging its feet for a while now and some have said Chancellor Merkel wanted to keep the Turkey question out of the debate to avoid any domestic repercussions. However, Mr Missfelder said said Germany needs Turkey as a "strategic partner".

Mr Missfelder said India and Germany share a good bilateral relationship and he hopes that this relationship would expand in the future.

 

[Neil]

IAI top executive (interviewed about unrelated topic in Air&Cosmos) : Israeli stuff being integrated in Indian Rafales!!!

the deal is yet to be signed...

 

[Drsomnath999]

Air&Cosmos 2369:

KH-31P/PD on Rafale ?

Page 19; Russian industrial reveal that, at the request of India, negotiations are underway to integrate on Rafale the KH-31P/PD anti-radar missile (AS-17 Krypton).
The estimated cost is $36.8 million and the integration could be done in 2014/2015. The KH31 is in competition with the AGM 88 Harm and would be chosen if Washington rejects the integration of the latter on Rafale.

COURTESY-OLYBRIUS
THANK U FOR THE INFO MATE

 

[Drsomnath999]

Dassault CEO : India's decision on Rafale is closed

A follow-up meeting every day around noon with CEO Eric Trappier, 50 employees working full-time, sharing responsibilities with HAL now settled. [...] Dassault mobilization is still strong to try to conclude the sale of 126 Rafale in India before the end of the year. And neither the approach of general elections, nor present or future moves by competitors trying to derail the deal , won't change New Delhi's decision , says the boss of the manufacturer.
"The decision (to choose the Rafale, Ed), is firm. The elections will not change the nature of the choice, "he said Thursday morning, after the presentation of interim results. If the signature does not occur before the election? Then "this will happen after. The tender has been long documented. I'm not worried, "said Eric Trappier which highlights the consensus of the political class on the need to modernize the Indian combat aviation.

Eric Trappier underlined his trust in the Indian public group Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), with which Dassault Aviation is working since 1989 and will be the prime contractor for the construction of the Rafale in India. Sources familiar with the matter had reported differences on the distribution of tasks. "They will take responsibility for the Rafale, and we are taking the responsibility to make sure they know how to build the Rafale," summed Eric Trappier. "We never issued any doubts about HAL."
Private Reliance group, with which Dassault Aviation has established a joint venture, will be a subcontractor for the manufacture of 108 Rafale that will be built in India after the first 18 producted in France.
Eric Trappier estimated that the first Rafale could be delivered to India three years after the signing of the contract, but stressed that they could not be taken directly from the French chains because the equipment must be adapted to Indian needs as from the first aircraft.
Dassault Aviation-La décision de l'Inde sur le Rafale est ferme, Actualités

 

[Armand2REP]

Please... just sign it! Defence exports were down to €5 billion last year. =(

 

[arnabmit]

India unlikely to finalise Dassault deal before September

There is some dispiriting news for French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian as he arrives here on Thursday to push the 126 fighter aircraft deal, said to be India's biggest-ever military tender.

Given the state of play in the Defence Ministry, the deal is unlikely to be finalised before the end of September. By then the election season would have set in and no bureaucrat would want to sign the deal. In such an eventuality, the deal is likely to be decided by the next government, said highly placed sources.

Two letters by parliamentarians to Defence Minister A.K. Antony are responsible for the Defence Ministry now going through the contract papers with a fine toothcomb. The bigger spanner in the works is the former External Affairs Minister, Yashwant Sinha, questioning the "life cycle cost" criteria or the cost incurred during the service life of the aircraft. He also claimed two of the seven criteria mentioned in the Defence Procurement Policy were not applied to the tender.

The second letter, which like Mr. Sinha's missive has been referred by Mr. Antony to Ministry officials, alleges manipulation of the entire tender process. Parliamentarian M. V. Mysoora Reddy's "patriotic responsibility" forced him to speak out against the selection of a company that has not sold a single plane of this type to an overseas customer.

Mr. Antony sent both letters to officials for an enquiry. While Mr. Sinha's allegations about life cycle costs are being looked into by Defence Finance officials who are finding it tough to do the calculations all over again, Mr. Reddy's letter has been sent to the unit that evaluated bids submitted by all the five contestants. But the original team has since moved on and the new set of officials faces the daunting task of doing the calculations all over again. It is unlikely they will wrap up the reviews by the time the poll season informally rings in and bureaucrats could hesitate from taking fresh initiatives.

In such a situation, France will be looking for promises that the award of the tender to Dassault will not be reopened. A four-nation European consortium, which along with the Americans and the Russians lost to the French, has already offered to lower the price of its offering.

Not over-anxious

But the French are not over-anxious. They are acutely familiar with the processes in the Indian Defence Ministry since their involvement began a few years after Independence and has continued apace since then. Moreover, they have a lot of pending projects in hand and will be contestants for two major tenders.

One port of call for the French Minister will be Gwalior that hosts Mirage fighters being currently upgraded by Dassault. France has also entered into an R&D tie-up for short range missiles, thus joining Russia and Israel, which are the only ones to have parted with technological knowhow while jointly designing and producing military hardware with India.

A mega project to construct French submarines is also on in Mumbai, though it has been hit by time and cost overruns.

Reliable sources said the Minister's visit is not meant to finalise the contract and Paris would be willing to wait as long as it takes.

There are other complexities as well such as technology transfer issues and questions being raised over the price because of rupee devaluation and the French Defence Ministry's decision to cut down on orders placed on Dassault for the same aircraft.

"There was never a tender of this size with so many complexities," said the sources while pointing out that the virtual reopening of the tender file coupled with the time being taken to thrash out other issues may not be good news at least for Dassault that is facing tough times at a time of economic slowdown.

@Armand2REP

 

[arnabmit]

'Rafale is as good as any 5th-generation aircraft': French defence minister

French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, visiting India at present, spoke to foreign editor Pramit Pal Chaudhuri about the $15 billion (Rs 87990 crore) Rafale fighter deal that is stilling awaiting formal completion and the Indo-French defence relationship.

How would you describe the state of Indo-French defence relations today?
Over the past 15 years,despite changes in the democratic lives of our respective nations, there has been a steadfast continuity in our strategic partnership.


For me, this is the cornerstone of our relationship. I'd like to pay tribute to the deep commitment and long-term visions of your former prime ministers Inder Kumar Gujral, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and, the present incumbent, Manmohan Singh. India and France share the same goal and support each other in strengthening their strategic autonomy.



Our defence relation is a longstanding one, initiated more than 60 years ago with successful joint achievements, such as the Toofan/Ouragan helicopter as early as 1953 or later the Milan missile. I am convinced it will continue to grow in scope, in maturity and in strength.

It is now two years since the Rafale fighter was selected by the Indian defence ministry but the deal is yet to be finalised. What is the reason for this delay and how long is Dassault prepared to wait?
The Rafale was selected in February 2012. Negotiations take time – that's natural, they are progressing well and I am confident.

This is the biggest armament tender of the world, so we have to establish a collaboration with industrial partners that will last for decades and negotiate the clauses of the contract itself.

Dassault is fully committed to this historic and strategic project. I would recommend patience and optimism. As your external affairs minister once said in this regard, "A good French wine takes time to mature and so do good contracts."

The Rafale is principally designed to counter the Chinese Air Force. Yet it is a fourth-generation fighter at a time when China is testing a fifth-generation airplane. Will Rafale be outdated by the time it is fully inducted?
The Rafale is an omni-role aircraft designed to address the entire range of challenges that countries like France, India or others may face. I would take all the excitement about third or fourth or fifth-generation aircraft with a pinch of salt.

As of today, the only operational so-called 'fifth-generation' fighter has never been used in combat. Frankly, in real terms, the Rafale is as good as any existing fifth-generation aircraft.

As the British say, "the proof is in the pudding". The Rafale has been used extensively in Afghanistan, Libya in 2011 and in Mali since January 2013.

Its performance has surpassed expectations. As minister of defence I can testify to its outstanding performance. The Rafale can be upgraded to integrate the latest technologies and it has a clear roadmap for future development. We will partner with India in this endeavour.

The Scorpene submarine's induction is now four years behind schedule. Do you see this as an indication of the technical limitations of Indian defence partners, especially state-owned firms?
During the state visit of president François Hollande in February, I had visited the Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) shipyard to review the progress of the programme.

I was able to gauge its mastery of the manufacture of key equipment. Four years may seem long to you, but this project is a real technological, industrial and human challenge for a company that had stopped building submarines 10 years before.

They had to train the personnel. This is also the first time that the first submarine is being built directly in the client's shipyard. It's a performance whose initial results should be acknowledged.

Here, too, our partnership has been forged for the long term and with trust. This programme proves that, together, we can execute major projects.

France faces greater competition for the Indian defence market than before. Israel and the US are among the new entrants. Is there anything that differentiates France from these other countries when it comes to arms exports?
We competed against the United States and others for the MMRCA tender, and we are currently contending against Israel in artillery and Russia for light utility helicopters. Transparent competition is healthy.

It helps India to secure the most favourable terms and makes the companies outdo themselves to win. French manufacturers are offering their best equipment at the best price. May the best win!

As for the rest, France's position is quite well-known: an unambiguous political commitment vis-à-vis India, unbroken supply continuity – cast your mind back to Kargil, openness to transfer of technology and joint development of new weapons systems with Indian manufacturers, and the certainty of transparency as French law prohibits and punishes corruption. Not a single French company has been blacklisted by India.

The Indian government has announced a new push to indigenise defence production and reduce its arms imports. Would this be an obstacle to France's commercial defence engagement with India?
On the contrary, France is well placed to understand India's resolve. We have ourselves expended much energy and public funds over the past few decades in building an industrial base capable of supporting our own national defence.

This policy continues even today, generating employment and bolstering our economy. International cooperation is an integral part of this strategy. That's what we are quite successfully doing with India, and it's a win-win situation. Scorpene is a good example. Other French companies are ready to embark on such projects, too.

France is the European nation with the largest Indian Ocean military presence. Has India been forthcoming in cooperating with France in this sphere?
For France and India, the security of the Indian Ocean and the adjacent zones, such as the Gulf of Aden and the Persian Gulf, are a shared interest. How can we ensure the security of the Indian Ocean without cooperating with India?

So that's what we are doing – by fighting piracy, through regular naval exercises, the construction of six Scorpene submarines in Mumbai that will be able to patrol in that area and others.

We also have regular exchanges between our military authorities and the French admiral commanding the Indian Ocean maritime zone was recently in Delhi and Goa.

We have a significant military presence with our bases in Reunion, Djibouti and Abu Dhabi. The nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and its Rafales will be patrolling the region by the end of this year.

Defence expenditure is shrinking rapidly in the West. Will this endanger France's ability to maintain an independent defence manufacturing base in such circumstances?
The scenario is not that drastic though Western countries are facing the biggest economic crisis in 40 years. President Hollande and his government are implementing several courageous reforms to preserve our social system and improve our competitiveness.

France attaches the utmost importance to her sovereignty and her strategic autonomy. The president has decided to maintain our defence spending for the future, ie $480 billion till 2025.

The French industrial sector is one of the best performing and is capable of adapting to market developments. The state will support it and our defence partners can rely on France.

 

[p2prada]

This is good. The lack of an ARM was always a problem for Rafale.

 

[arnabmit]

Rafale jet deal put on the back burner, French Minister leaves with hopes alone

French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian came to Delhi, charmed his counterpart A K Antony, but could not conquer.

After three days in India, when he held formal talks with the Indian defence ministry top brass and also lectured the Indian military think-tank IDSA, Le Drian returned home Saturday empty-handed, without even the Rs 1 lakh crore combat jets deal for which French Rafale was chosen as the lowest bidder in January 2012.

Apart from pitching for broader defence ties, Le Drian had to admit he faced the risk of disappointing the discerning strategic thinkers and defence watchers in India and France on the "priority" Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) contract.

"Of course, the MMRCA project is the priority. At the risk of disappointing you, I will not be announcing the date of signing the contract," Le Drian said at IDSA.

The bottom line is: The "most important defence deal in history" to supply Rafale for the Indian Air Force (IAF) may not happen in the near future or during the 2013-14 fiscal, or even during the tenure of the present UPA II government that ends next May.

There were enough signals in this regard during Le Drian's stay in the Indian capital and during his and his officials' interaction with the media and the intelligentsia. Le Drian, however, exuded confidence that the contract itself, which was bagged by French firm Dassault Aviation, was not in trouble over the poor financial state of the company.

Dassault Aviation's Rafale plane had won the stiffly fought four-and-a-half-year contest against European consortium EADS Cassidian's Eurofighter Typhoon, American major Boeing's F/A-18 and Lockheed Martin's F-16, Russian United Aircraft Corporation's MiG-35 and Swedish Saab's Gripen.

To assure India that fiscally troubled Dassault Aviation is able to complete the contract obligations in full, the French government will now provide guarantees through an agreement with the Indian government in the MMRCA contract.

"This new agreement needs to be negotiated and hence the deal could be further delayed," said a senior Indian defence ministry official.

Asked if the French were confident of signing the deal before the next Lok Sabha elections scheduled in April-May next year, a source close to the French defence minister virtually confirmed the fears that this may not be possible, saying: "There was never any deadline for signing of this contract. Negotiations are progressing well. Once these are completed, the contract will be signed."

The source also noted that the acquisition process for the MMRCA was "complicated" due to "numerous negotiations" for sub-contracts with a large number of Indian Small and Medium Scale Enterprises that are suppliers to the Indian public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the primary licenced production agency for the Rafale planes.

The Indian SMEs will be manufacturing and supplying the parts and sub-parts required by HAL to assemble the Rafale at its facility in India. Dassault Aviation will supply the first 18 Rafales from its production facility in France, but HAL will be licence-building the rest 108 Rafales of the 126-plane order at its facility here in India.

That apart, the contract-signing is delayed over issues arising out of the offset provisions, under which Dassault Aviation will plough back 50 per cent of the deal amount in Indian defence sector, through either direct purchases or providing technological know-how.

"These are complicated processes and the proposals for offset and technology transfer have to be gone over through a fine tooth comb," a defence ministry official averred.

Since the January 2012 selection of Dassault Aviation as the lowest bidder in the August 2007 MMRCA tender, already 18 months have lapsed. With the UPA II government heading towards a General Election, the window of opportunity for signing of the contract within the tenure of the Manmohan Singh administration may end by December 2013.

The nation and its air force may have to wait for the next government before the MMRCA deal is through and the much-needed induction of the new Rafale planes into the IAF fleet may be further pushed to 2018.

The IAF badly needs to reinforce its combat fleet strength due to its fast-depleting numbers, which is likely to dip to 29 squadrons from the present 33 by 2018, as the ageing Soviet-origin MiG-21s' phase-out will begin in 2017. The induction of Rafales from 2018 will help arrest the depletion of the IAF's squadron strength, which will go up to 42 squadrons on the strength of the new inductions, which will include the Indo-Russian Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) by 2025.

 

[p2prada]

Nothing is on the back burner. This is DDM at its best, with unnecessary sensationalist articles.

 

[U Sun Dar]

French Defence Minister Assured Of Rafale Contract 'Soon'

Indian government leaders informed visiting French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian yesterday that M-MRCA contract negotiations for the Dassault Rafale were progressing well, and that there was no cause for worry since the process was in its "final stage", sources say. This was in response to the French minister enquiring about perceived and reported delays in the process.

Both sides are hopeful of a contract signature before March 2014.

As recently as April this year, the IAF had expressed some consternation to the MoD on the potential for delays in a contract signature, listing factors that could contribute. This was an off-the-books discussion held between the offices of the Deputy Chief of Air Staff and the Defence Secretary (the man who's now India's national auditor). Sources familiar with the discussion shared with the Livefist the following points from it (unedited):
CAS (Chief of Air Staff) had quoted expectations over all negotiations/paperwork for programme to be completed by Apr/May 13. Current status shows major heads unresolved.
Several issues of delay under major heads. (Transfer of technology, workshare, offset commitments and contractual matters)
Environment for contract becoming less optimal as political environment moves towards elections at states and centre.
Max. of 12 months left for General Elections, or 10 months before Code of Conduct is activated. Time to complete procedures short and decreasing.
Vested interests floating harmful speculations. Being taken up by press, both print and electronic.
Political leaders may raise questions or objections as in the past with programme.
Motivated reports about certain "back-up plans" need to be addressed. Message must be sent that IAF enjoys no back-up plan at this time.
Sqn strength at 34 (Offl sanctioned 42, and optimal strength is 39). Depletion already occuring, and will continue in case asset accrual does not take place on schedule.
Since April, things have progressed well, and as the IAF clarified on more than one occasion, things have indeed progressed substantively.

 

[halloweene]

Expect signature in December.

 

[mikhail]

Please... just sign it! Defence exports were down to €5 billion last year. =(

hey hold your horses Armand because we all know that the I.A.F.needs those Rafales more than anything else at the present situation!so just be patient and i am quite sure that this deal will go through successfully in this fiscal year itself and according to many respected defense analysts the I.A.F. will probably end up ordering more than 200 Rafales in the near future.

 

[Drsomnath999]

Air fan 415, june 2013:

10 pages devoted to Rafale and CEAM (center of military aerial experimentation). :

CEAM has completed testing of Rafale F3.3 and F3.3' and is currently testing the new electronic antenna:

Standard F3.3
- Improved L16: better fluidity, targets transmitted are directly integrated into the weapon system. Each new Rafale standard will bring L16 improvements.
- Improved firing control for GBU 22/24.
- MMI improvements.
- Bugs fixed (F3.3')

Others improvements tested:
- Integration of ITT4949 Leaky Green (nightvision binoculars)
- Reco-ng v6 for better reliability.

Deliveries :
- 13 F1 (2 B and 1 C are still used for tests and developments , 10 being upgraded to F3)
- 48 F2 (now upgraded to F3)
- 59 F3 (the last one was C144 delivered in May)
- 60 F3-04T [only C137 and B339 have been delivered to date]

AESA:
- Daily tests since October 2012
- Spectacular gains: detection range doubled, wider field of scanning, increased resistance to jamming and decoy systems.
- Same interface for the crew (same symbology).
- The exact number is classified but production RBE2 AESA have more than 1000 modules.
- Perfect reliability (no failure in 6 months of intense testing)
- The replacement of the passive antenna takes two hours, without tests and without software modifications.
- 6 Rafale AESA will be delivered in 2013, a package of 4 aircraft will go to EC 1/7 Provence, 2 other devices will end tests.
- AESA Rafale and PESA Rafale will work in cooperation , AESA Rafale working as a mini AWACS by transferring targets via L16.
- New air/air configuration requested : 8 MICA or 6 MICA/2 METEOR or 4 MICA/4 METEOR

Roadmap:
- F3R standard, planned for 2018, is under developement
- Dassault is planning a mid-life renovation in the 2020s and a Rafale NG from 2030:
Mid-life renovation: new weapons, improvement of passive sensors and radar, densification of data exchanges (tactical data, images, videos). Improved discretion. Interaction with UCAVs...
Rafale NG: New design, reduced RCS, reduced drag. 9T engines. Sensors integrated into the fuselage. DIRCM laser turrets to blind incoming infrared missiles...

COURTESY-OLYBRIUS
THANK U FOR THE INFO MATE

 

[Drsomnath999]

KOREAN EVALUATION REPORT KFX

The fighter was reported to have earned good reviews from
Korean pilots who had test flown the aircraft as a means to
evaluate whether it meets Air Force operational requirements.
Korean Air Force pilots regarded the Rafale as a highly
maneuverable piece of hardware, making it a pilots dream

COURTESY-MARC SAMPAIX
THANK U FOR THE INFO MATE

 

[farhan_9909]

France to cut back on Rafale order

Now, Indian order is all the more important for Dassault

The French state has decided to cut back its orders for Rafale fighter jets from the current 11 per year to just 26 over the next six years. This could jeopardise the entire Rafale programme unless Dassault Aviation is able to sign the India contract for the sale of 126 fighters for over €10 billion.

At a press conference here on Friday, France's Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who returned from a trip to India last week, was blunt: as of 2016, Dassault Aviation should count only on exports to support the production of the multirole combat aircraft. That can mean only one thing: wrap up the contract with India or you're sunk.

He announced the government's new Defence Review, known in French as the Draft Military Programme (LPM),for French forces from 2014 to 2019.

After much wrangling with the government, Dassault had obtained the purchase by the military of 11 jets a year. At a recent press conference, Eric Trappier, CEO of Dassault Aviation, the company that makes the aircraft, warned that anything below 11 per year would be commercially unviable for the company. Dassault has been unable to sell a single Rafale abroad, and the company is pinning all its hopes on the Indian contract.

It is unclear what sort of assurances Mr. Le Drian received on his recent trip to India. Did the Indians tell him the contract was in the bag and he felt confident enough to announce cuts in the government's budget for the Rafale or, on the contrary, is this his way of warning Dassault Aviation and the French public of the woes that lie ahead?

"There are countries that are more than interested in the Rafale and I am speaking particularly of India, Qatar and others, and I am very sure of the Rafale's export capacity in the months ahead," Mr. Le Drian said in a radio interview on Friday morning. "I am very hopeful that the negotiations with India will be fruitful."

Was that his way of sending a positive message to say that relief was on its way because the Indians are ready to sign on the dotted line?

But news from New Delhi points in another direction altogether.

Reports indicate that serious doubts have been raised about the life cycle costs of the Rafale by responsible and respected politicians like the former Finance and Foreign Affairs Minister, Yashwant Sinha, and that Defence Minister A.K.Antony, with his habitual caution, has ordered a cost review which could seriously delay the signature. Beyond October, with elections looming large on the horizon, it is difficult to imagine a quick signature of the biggest defence tender ever floated by India.

The LPM aims to make "exceptional savings," notably through a reduction in force (RIF) exercise, through the sale of immovable assets belonging to the country's armed services and by limiting its orders for the Rafale.

The daily Le Monde noted in its edition dated August 2: "To date, the aircraft built by Dassault Aviation has never sold outside France. India could be the first foreign country to equip its air force with it, but nothing is concrete yet. And past mishaps by way of failed negotiations with Brazil and the United Arab Emirates should incite the executive to display greater prudence in the matter."

As another newspaper, the economic daily Les Echos, pointed out, the army budget is posited on at least one major foreign sale of the Rafale.

Normally speaking, if the current rhythm of delivery to the French military is maintained, Dassault should deliver 66 planes by 2019. But under the LPM announced by the minister on Friday, the French military will purchase only 26 aircraft during this period, creating a shortfall of €4 billion for Dassault.

"Dassault Aviation will have to sell some 40 planes to France's commercial partners," wrote Le Monde, if it is to juggle production costs, the army's requirements and the minimum number of aircraft it must build to maintain the commercial validity of the Rafale programme. "The minister appeared most optimistic that the plane would be sold abroad. But what would happen if foreign sales are not concluded? All the aircraft produced will be bought by the French military. At €100 million apiece, the bill will have climbed to about €4 billion by 2019." French plans to impose budget cuts could go up in smoke, the paper suggests.

The Indians being fine negotiators have realised that Dassault Aviation is desperate to sell. They are therefore also dragging out the negotiating process in a bid to squeeze every possible concession from Dassault. But there could come a tipping point beyond which the negotiations will stall because of India's domestic electoral calendar. The Indian Air Force badly needs this plane, and the negotiators should be sanguine enough to move back from the brink before the tipping point is reached.

Link - France to cut back on Rafale order - The Hindu

 

[farhan_9909]

After investing 40billion dollars.France could not even induct 100 into there air force in total.

May be they will later order the Eurofighter