France delays delivery of Rafale fighter to India

French aerospace giant Dassault Aviation facing a new reality as the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic spreads. Planemaker said that the production of Rafale fighter jets has been temporarily suspended in France due to the coronavirus outbreak, which could impact the delivery schedule of the aircraft to India.

Faced with the outbreak of the Covid-19 coronavirus, Dassault announced on February 27 that it would have to suspend its objectives for the year 2020 due to “uncertainties regarding the scale of the pandemic, its geographical extent, its duration and its economic and social consequences“.

For its part, the Indian ministry of defense is struggling to finalize the date for induction of the first four Rafale jets amid speculations of delayed delivery of fighter jets from France due to coronavirus threat.

- ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW -

The Week Magazine reported that though Defense Minister Rajnath Singh last week claimed that the first four Rafale jets would land in India in the last week of May, the Air Force headquarters is yet to get confirmation from the French officials. Indian government on Wednesday suspended all existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/international organisations till April 15.

In addition, the lockdown restrictions are expected to continue in France at least till the end of April due to severity of the outbreak.

In October 2019, on a visit to France for the second India-France ministerial-level annual defence dialogue, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh took formal delivery of the first Rafale jet built for the IAF at the Dassault Aviation’s facility in Merignac. The jets were scheduled to arrive in India by May 2020.

The Indian Air Force has awarded the contract for the acquisition of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft in 2016.

If you would like to show your support for what we are doing, here's where to do it.

If you wish to report grammatical or factual errors within our news articles, you can let us know by using the online feedback form.

Executive Editor

About author:

Dylan Malyasov
Dylan Malyasov
Dylan Malyasov is the editor-in-chief of Defence Blog. He is a journalist, an accredited defense advisor, and a consultant. His background as a defense advisor and consultant adds a unique perspective to his journalistic endeavors, ensuring that his reporting is well-informed and authoritative. read more

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE

TRENDING NOW

Anduril’s unmanned submarine sets new milestone

Anduril Industries has announced that its Dive-XL Extra-Large Autonomous Undersea Vehicle (XL-AUV) has achieved a new milestone by completing a 100-hour single voyage—the longest...