The Indian Army were already capable of a nuclear attack, but now the Indian Air Force's (IAF) Bahubali Rafale will strengthen India's firepower.
The 'Rafale era' of new India took off with France Defence Minister Florence Parly attending the Rafale Induction Ceremony. Now a warrior like Rafale has joined the Indian Air Force to give India that extra edge in the sky.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Thursday formally inducted the Rafale aircraft, at Air Force Station in Ambala. The aircraft is a part of 17 Squadron, the "Golden Arrows". The first five Indian Air Force Rafale aircraft arrived at Air Force Station, Ambala from France on July 27, 2020. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and French Defence Minister Florence Parly are the chief guests for the event.
This news is going to raise the concern of both China and Pakistan. The deadly weapons of the Indian Army were already capable of a nuclear attack, but now the Indian Air Force's Bahubali Rafale will strengthen India's strength. Rafale's ability to carry nuclear warheads and missiles makes it different. Most powerful fighter jets from China and Pakistan does not have this feature-loaded.
Five Rafale fighter aircraft arrived in India from France on July 29. The French-origin fighter aircraft are part of the 17 Golden Arrows squadron of the Air Force.
The Rafale aircraft have already flown over the Ladakh region and have been familiarising with the terrain over which they have to fly in different parts of the country.
The five Rafales which have arrived in the country include three single-seaters and two twin-seaters. The Rafales, armed with the air-to-air meteor, air to ground SCALP and hammer missiles, are expected to give an edge to the Indian Air Force over its traditional adversaries China and Pakistan in the South Asian skies due to its long-range hit capabilities.
Here are the 10 best features of Rafale.
1. Fourth Generation Fighter Jet
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Rafale is a fourth-generation jet with both twin generation engines and Delta-wing. This fighter jet also carries semi-stealth capabilities that can execute nuclear attacks.
2. A Rafale has the power to stack five planes of enemies.
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The biggest feature of Rafale is Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile. The range of this is more than 150 kilometers. So, from within the Indian border Rafale can launch a missile attack 150 kilometers inside the Chinese or Pakistan border.
3. How powerful is Rafale Fighter Jet
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How powerful any fighter aircraft is, it depends on the technology and sensor capability and weapons of that aircraft. This means that how far this fighter aircraft can see and how far it can destroy its target. In this case, Rafale is a very modern and powerful aircraft. If you compare the Chinese J-20 and the Rafale of India, the Rafale is easily far better on many aspects than the Chinese fighter jet J-20.
4. Combat Radius of Rafale
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Just like Rafale's Combat Radius is 3 thousand 700 kilometers while J-20's Combat Radius is 3 thousand 400 kilometers. Combat Radius means the distance a fighter plane can go from its base at once.
5. Powerful and Reliable M-88 Engine
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China is yet to produce a new generation engine for its J-20 fighter aircraft and is currently using Russian engines, while Rafale has a powerful and reliable M-88 engine.
6. Laser guided bombs and deadly missiles
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6 laser-guided bombs can also be fitted with three types of deadly missiles in Rafale.
7. Rafale Jets can carry more weapons and fuel
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Rafale can lift one and a half times more weight than its weight while J-20 can lift 1.2 times. That is, Rafale can carry more weapons and fuel with it.
8. Rafale fighter jets are battlefield ready
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The most important thing is that Rafale has shown its ability on the battlefield. Rafale is deployed in the French Air Force and Navy for the last 14 years.
9. Proven track record in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya
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In Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Libya, Rafale has shown its capability, whereas in comparison China has brought its J-20 fighter aircraft in 2017, just three years ago.
