New Delhi: India is preparing to finalize one of the largest defense agreements in its military history, under which it plans to acquire 114 Rafale fighter jets from France. The deal is estimated to be worth between $35 billion and $40 billion. India has already approved the Letter of Request (LoR), which is expected to be sent to Paris soon.
A major condition of the agreement is that 90 out of the 114 aircraft will be manufactured in India under local production requirements. As part of this arrangement, at least 50 percent of the components must be produced domestically.
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to France at the end of June, the Chief of the Indian Air Force is scheduled to visit France next month. The contract is expected to be signed by the end of this year.
India is also negotiating access to the Rafale weapon control system interface in order to integrate indigenous weapons into the aircraft. These include the Astra air-to-air missile and the BrahMos anti-ship missile.
