Although the case for the acquisition of the two
single-engine trainers is still at a preliminary stage, the IAF is
'desirous' of getting their 'numbers up from 49 to 51' again and is
planning to make a pitch for the aircraft to the Ministry of Defense.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking to replace the two Mirage 2000 trainer aircraft, which crashed earlier this year.
While
the case for the acquisition of the two single-engine trainers is still
at a preliminary stage, it is understood that the IAF, ‘desirous’ of
getting their ‘numbers up from 49 to 51′ again, is planning to make a
pitch for the aircraft to the Ministry of Defense.
Sources told
StratPost that the imperative for the purchase was made all the more
compelling because the two aircraft that crashed were trainer versions.
Until the crashes, the IAF had 10 trainer aircraft, spread over each of
the three IAF Mirage 2000 squadrons. Now down to eight, these aircraft
are essential for training fresh pilots on the aircraft type. With the
shortfall caused by the two crashes, the IAF has decided to ask for the
purchase of the two aircraft.
Since, the aircraft is no longer
manufactured by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), Dassault, the
IAF is planning to identify a foreign air force operating the aircraft,
to which the sale can be proposed.
Although the aircraft is
operated by nine foreign air forces, only the French Armée de l’Air, and
the air forces of the United Arab Emirates, Greece and Taiwan operate
them in any significant numbers.
The IAF has plans to operate its
Mirage 2000 fleet over at least the next two decades. Last year, India
ordered a USD 2.4 billion upgrade package from Dassault and Thales for
its Mirage 2000 aircraft, to match the Mirage 2000-5 configuration,
followed by a separate weapons package worth USD 1.23 billion for 450
MBDA MICA air-to-air missiles.
Keeping it French, the
Dassault-built successor to the Mirage 2000, the Rafale, was selected
earlier this year, as the lowest technically qualified bidder in the IAF
contest for an estimated USD 20 billion order for 126 Medium Multi Role
Combat Aircraft (MMRCA), beating the Eurofighter Typhoon on price.
The
other competitors, the Russian MiG-35, the Swedish Saab Gripen, and US
aircraft, the Lockheed Martin F-16 and the Boeing F/A-18, were
eliminated from the contest after the technical trials.
Read more here: http://www.stratpost.com
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