On the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashami, Rajnath Singh will perform the ‘Shastra puja’ and fly a sortie in the Rafale fighter jet
New Delhi: On Monday, Union Defence minister Rajnath Singh will embark on a two-day visit to France. During his visit, he will receive 36 rafale fighter jet manufactured for India. On 8 October, the Defence Minister is scheduled to meet the French President Emmanuel Macron.
After the meeting, Singh will proceed to Bordeaux to participate in the Rafale fighter jet handing-over ceremony at Merignac along with French minister of armed forces Florence Parly.
On the auspicious occasion of Vijayadashami Rajnath Singh will perform the ‘Shastra puja‘ and fly a sortie in the Rafale fighter jet. “A French pilot will fly in the front cockpit while Singh will sit in the rear cockpit as per the plans decided. The first Indian Rafale fighter jet with tail no RB-01 will be used for the sortie,” sources in IAF said.
The initial numbers of newly-appointed IAF chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria in recognition of his role in the around Rs 60,000 crore deal signed in 2016 for 36 planes.
Leaving New Delhi for Paris on a three day visit to France. Shall attend the Annual Defence Dialogue and the Induction Ceremony of Rafale.
India-France bilateral relations have made tremendous progress in the recent years. Looking forward to further and deepen these ties.
— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) October 7, 2019
Rajnath Singh will also hold the annual defence dialogue with the French minister of armed forces during his visit in France.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will address the CEOs of the French defence industry on 9th of October in which he is likely to urge them to participate in ‘Make in India’ and the Defence Expert to be held in Lucknow on February 2020 next year.
Rajnath Singh will visit Paris with a team of senior defence and air force officials, including Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal HS Arora, said the sources. The Indian planes have been equipped with many India-specific enhancements, which have been fitted at a cost of around one billion euros.
Indian pilots have already trained on the Rafale jets. The IAF said that it would train 24 pilots in three different batches by May 2020 for flying the Indian Rafale fighter jets.
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