Editorial: India to Consider French Fighter Jets for Navy’s Newest Aircraft Carrier

Image: Wiki Commons

By Franz-Stefan Gady

France’s Dassault Aviation will brief Indian Navy officials on the naval version of the Rafale aircraft this week.

Representatives of French aircraft maker Dassault Aviation are slated to meet with senior officials of the Indian Navy to pitch the naval version of the Dassault Rafale twin-engine, fourth generation multirole fighter this week, according to local media reports.

The briefing is scheduled for January 29.

Sources within India’s Defense Ministry said that New Delhi has asked four countries (France, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia) for proposals for the design of the country’s first 65,000-ton supercarrier carrier, the INS Vishal, the second ship of the Vikrant-class. The INS Vishal will allegedly feature significant design changes from the lead vessel, the INS Vikrant, including possible nuclear propulsion and Catapult Launched But Arrest Landing (CATOBAR) and Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch Systems (EMALS). (The INS Vikrant will feature a Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) configuration.

While, the INS Vikrant will carry MIG 29K fighter aircraft, the Indian Navy is still undecided whether it will stick with the Russian-made aircraft for the INS Vishal, according to sources. The type of aircraft stationed aboard the new supercarrier will heavily influence the new vessel’s design and is thus of critical importance. The Indian Navy is interested in purchasing up to 54 new aircraft.

Read the full story at The Diplomat