French combat plane manufacturer Dassault’s Rafale fighter has won the Indian MMRCA competiton beating the European consortum’s Eurofighter aircraft in a contest that went on for four years. Rafale executives were called by Indian MOD officials this morning and informed that their aircraft has been finally selected.
The Dassault Rafale (French pronunciation: [ʁafal], squall) is a French twin-engine delta-wing multi-role jet fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. It is called an “omnirole” fighter by its manufacturer.
In the late 1970s, the French Air Force and Navy were seeking replacements for its aircraft. To save development costs, France agreed with four other nations to produce an air dominance fighter, but subsequent disagreements led to a split. To satisfy stringent criteria formulated by the Ministry of Defense, Dassault built atechnology demonstrator to prove the viability of its new product. Further development led to the current Rafale variants, which embody innovative avionics and aerodynamics, optimised for air supremacy operations.
Introduced in 2000, the Rafale is being produced both for land-based use with the French Air Force and forcarrier-based operations with the French Navy. It has also been marketed for export to several countries, including selection by the Indian Air Force.
(**source- wikipedia&indiandefence.com)
PIYUSH YADAV 