In a significant boost to naval aviation capabilities, India and France have formally signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for the procurement of 26 Rafale-M fighter jets, valued at approximately ₹63,000 crore. The agreement was finalized during a ceremony held at Nau Sena Bhawan, with Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, Navy Vice Chief Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, and French Ambassador to India Thoerry Mathou in attendance.
The signing was conducted remotely by the two countries’ defence ministers, following the postponement of the French Defence Minister’s visit to India due to personal reasons. Alongside the IGA, a number of related Government-to-Business contracts were also signed.
Currently, the Indian Navy operates two aircraft carriers — the Russian-origin INS Vikramaditya and the domestically developed INS Vikrant, commissioned in September 2022. These carriers primarily deploy the MiG-29K fighters, of which 45 were procured from Russia. However, due to the aging fleet and concerns about availability rates, the Navy initiated the search for a replacement. Originally, 54 jets were planned to be acquired, with Dassault’s Rafale-M and Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet vying for selection. Ultimately, the Rafale-M was found compliant, though the number of jets was scaled back to 26 after the DRDO committed to developing an indigenous Twin Engine Deck-Based Fighter (TEDBF), building on experience from the Naval Light Combat Aircraft program.
An important feature of this new acquisition will be the integration of India’s homegrown Astra Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile onto the Rafale-M fighters.
According to officials, the first deliveries are expected approximately three and a half years after the contract is signed, with the entire batch to be handed over within six and a half years. Of the 26 jets, 22 will be single-seat carrier-capable aircraft, while the remaining four will be twin-seat trainers that are not designed for carrier operations.
India already has experience operating Rafales, with the Indian Air Force flying 36 jets acquired under a ₹60,000 crore deal signed in 2016.
Given the design of Indian aircraft carriers — which use ski-jumps for takeoff and arrestor wires for landing — some modifications will be required to adapt the Rafale-Ms. Specifically, adjustments will be needed for the aircraft lifts onboard the carriers, which were originally designed for the bulkier MiG-29K fighters, to ensure seamless movement of Rafales between the hangar and flight deck.
