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India’s proposed acquisition of 114 Rafale fighters is moving into the evaluation stage, with the Defence Ministry expecting to reach a conclusion on the multi-billion-dollar deal by the end of the current financial year.
The Ministry of Defence is evaluating bids submitted for the Indian Air Force’s 114-fighter requirement, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh has said, indicating that the long-pending acquisition could move towards a conclusion within the year.
Speaking to ANI, Singh said the formal evaluation of bids submitted in response to the Request for Proposal (RFP) is underway and that the procurement would go beyond India’s earlier Rafale acquisitions by incorporating a substantial indigenous production and systems-integration component.
“They had agreed to integrate Indian weapons even into the already contracted Rafale Marines that we had bought. In this case, of course, we are going one step ahead, in the sense that it’s a buy-and-make programme, with the bulk of the aircraft to be assembled in India, with significant levels of indigenisation and integration of Indian systems and weapons,” Singh said.
“They have given their bids, and these are being evaluated. After that, we’ll start taking it up. We should be able to reach some conclusion in that procurement cycle before the end of this year,” he added.
The proposed 114-aircraft programme is significant for the IAF, which continues to operate with a fighter fleet well below its authorised strength of 42 squadrons. The acquisition is also being pursued against the backdrop of the gradual retirement of legacy fighters and delays in building up indigenous fighter production.
India currently operates 36 Rafale fighters acquired under the earlier government-to-government (G2G) agreement with France. The Navy has separately contracted 26 Rafale Marine fighters for operations from its aircraft carriers.
The new programme would therefore represent a substantial expansion of the Rafale fleet while simultaneously creating an opportunity to establish another fighter manufacturing line in India.
Under the proposed Buy and Make model, the bulk of the 114 aircraft would be assembled in India. The programme is also expected to involve higher levels of localisation and integration of Indian weapons and systems, potentially giving the acquisition a larger industrial footprint than the earlier Rafale contract.
The Rafale procurement is, however, only one part of the IAF’s effort to rebuild combat strength. The government is simultaneously pushing the indigenous fighter programme, particularly the LCA Tejas Mk1A and the more capable LCA Mk2.
HAL is expected to accelerate deliveries of the Tejas Mk1A following the availability of GE Aerospace engines. The IAF is looking to build up its first operational Mk1A squadron, with deliveries expected to gather pace during the year.
The LCA Mk2, meanwhile, remains a key element of the longer-term fighter roadmap, with the first flight targeted for 2027.
The 114-Rafale programme thus sits at the intersection of two parallel imperatives for the IAF – the immediate need to replenish fighter numbers and the longer-term objective of building a stronger indigenous aerospace manufacturing base.
The outcome of the ongoing evaluation will determine not only the size and structure of the Rafale fleet but also the extent to which one of India’s largest fighter acquisitions becomes a vehicle for domestic production and integration of Indian defence technologies.
Team BharatShakti
