So Finally French Company Dassault succeeded to reach the final stage of negotiations with Indian Defense for the Rafale Fighter Jets. And there we hear all the hue and cry from the various quarters. Reminds me of the time when this deal was in the initial stage and US companies Boeing and Lockheed Martin were ousted from the race for F-16s and the F-18s hornets. Though the news that came to the Media is the selection of Rafale on the basis of Lowest Bid, it would be interesting to know the technicalities involved.
My own research on Rafale v/s Eurofighter Typhoon v/s F16s and F18 hornets reveals that overall Rafael is quite a good deal for the Indian Airforce. Interestingly in the one-to-one dogfight with the other mentioned fighter jets, Rafale had been proven the best of the lot.
In another comparison with the identified fighter Jets by Dutch Royal Airforce, Rafale had received the score of 6.95, second only to the F35s which got 6.97. Certainly that is the close shave between F35s and Rafale. So, when F35s were nowhere in the race, Rafale stands out to be the best when it comes to the maneuverability, flying capabilities and the other specifications as per the Indian Defense Organization.
Certainly, one things needs to be agreed on and that would be around the Training of the Fighter Pilots and the maintenance team for the purpose of ensuring that the Fighter Jets are engaged and maintained in the same fashion as the highest order in quality.
The one thing that I would like to remember ultimately - A fighter Jet is as good as the Fighter Pilot handling it!!
