Aircraft
Indian Rethink Is Leading To a Smaller Rafale Deal
Procurement funds may be switched to indigenous LCA and Indo-Russian FGFA.
This model of the Rafale in Indian Air Force markings was displayed at the last Aero-India show. (Photo: Neelam Mathews)
This model of the Rafale in Indian Air Force markings was displayed at the last Aero-India show. (Photo: Neelam Mathews)

The new Indian government’s decision ‘in principle’ to buy 36 Rafale combat aircraft direct from the Dassault production line in France, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 10, appears to spell the end of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) acquisition process. Speaking on Indian television two days later, defense minister Manohar Parrikar acknowledged that the protracted delay in closing the MMRCA deal, caused largely by difficulty in agreeing terms and conditions for licensed production of the Rafale in India, had not served India well.