The lowest bidder for MMRCA deal was arrived at after detailed calculations by the ministry of defence in the wake of opening of the financial bids in November last year. Prior to that, technical trials were carried out by the IAF following which only the Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon were found to have attained the technical requisites that the IAF wanted.
Four other global competitors (Americans, Russians and Swedish) were knocked out of the race at that stage.
Of the 126 aircraft that will be acquired, 18 will be acquired in “fly-away” condition from the vendor in the next three years while the remaining 108 will be built by the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. in the next seven years after that with technology transfer.
The contract is expected to be signed in the next five months. The 126 fighter aircraft are expected to boost the IAF’s fire-power and the number of their fighter squadrons.
This is the first overseas success of Dassault in its bid to sell the Rafale aircraft to foreign air forces. Dassault sources hailed it as the “turning point” in the fortunes of the Rafale overseas.
India’s acquisition will lend a significant boost to the Rafale assembly line production amid earlier speculation and fears of a severe financial setback had Dassault had lost the Indian bid.