India has signed a deal to buy 36 Dassault Rafale fighters.
The deal was inked, in New Delhi 23rd September, by the Indian defense minister, Manohar Parrikar, and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian.
The contract is worth EUR 7.75 billion ($8.69 billion) for the French-built aircraft along with related weapons and a support package.
Finalization of the deal brings to an end a long-running procurement process to equip the Indian air force with the Rafale, which was chosen as the winner of its medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) tender in 2012, defeating the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Eurofighter Typhoon.
Other earlier candidates for the contract included the Lockheed Martin F-16, RAC MiG-35 and Saab Gripen.
The deal was inked, in New Delhi 23rd September, by the Indian defense minister, Manohar Parrikar, and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian.
The contract is worth EUR 7.75 billion ($8.69 billion) for the French-built aircraft along with related weapons and a support package.
Finalization of the deal brings to an end a long-running procurement process to equip the Indian air force with the Rafale, which was chosen as the winner of its medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) tender in 2012, defeating the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Eurofighter Typhoon.
Other earlier candidates for the contract included the Lockheed Martin F-16, RAC MiG-35 and Saab Gripen.