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IAF successfully fires long-range air-to-air missile ” MICA” from upgraded Mirage-2000

One has to wonder why French were contracted then! Any ideas?

I wonder the same, as it is freaking 40 million worth of upgrades per aircraft without adding additional time to the airframe, and without the ability to fire Meteor or Scalp/StormShadow.

The flyaway cost of a new Gripen A/B is 60 million, with all the above features and Selex AESA Radar.

You tell me.
 
That is referred to as a stand off weapon keeping the fighter plane away from enemy air defences. I think Bhramos fit that profile for India.
Pakistan has RAAD and some other missiles for similar role.

H 4 - SOW glide bombs with 120km range.
MAR 1 missiles as well which can target any radiating target on ground upto 100km.
 
We are acquiring rafales instead.

Yes, indeed. We are. But a job which can be done by an aircraft with per hour flying cost at $6-7000, why involve an advanced jet which costs $20,000? Precision Bombing is one mission example, Mirage 2000 and Rafale can achieve similar results, at 1/3rd the cost.

Rafale has higher survivability, and is appropriate for initial SEAD missions. But Mirage 2000/Mig-29s too are potent platforms.
 
Yes, indeed. We are. But a job which can be done by an aircraft with per hour flying cost at $6-7000, why involve an advanced jet which costs $20,000? Precision Bombing is one mission example, Mirage 2000 and Rafale can achieve similar results, at 1/3rd the cost.

Rafale has higher survivability, and is appropriate for initial SEAD missions. But Mirage 2000/Mig-29s too are potent platforms.
It would have been a potent plateform 10-15 years back but now it doesn't make any sense to go for mirages with limited life instead of rafales. What more important is that one rafale is equals to 3 mirages and this is not something that i am saying but it has been said by the professionals here on the forum who has worked with French defense industry.
So if we are going to induct any fighter aircraft it should fit within IAF's future doctrine and the upgrades on mirages was necessary due to the delays in IAF's fighter procurement programs.
 
It would have been a potent plateform 10-15 years back but now it doesn't make any sense to go for mirages with limited life instead of rafales. What more important is that one rafale is equals to 3 mirages and this is not something that i am saying but it has been said by the professionals here on the forum who has worked with French defense industry.
So if we are going to induct any fighter aircraft it should fit within IAF's future doctrine and the upgrades on mirages was necessary due to the delays in IAF's fighter procurement programs.

You have to understand the context to what they say a Rafale is equals to 3 Mirages, it is in terms of variation roles. For precision bombing and air cover, Mirages will be equally effective.
 
One has to wonder why French were contracted then! Any ideas?

Yup, like the only reason somebody gets contracted in all of these deals is because they offer the best value........:lol:

There is seriously no point in arguing this one way or the other. The cost was exorbitant & the IAF was split too on the value of such an expensive upgrade. In any case, it's water under the bridge now. The French have always proven to be super expensive even if they do have some really good stuff. They also know how to play the game for upgrades, cost escalations etc. Nothing of that is hidden, we didn't have American options earlier which pretty much left the French as the only serious western source. We now have & must extract good value for deals in the future. No point in beating this dead horse.
 
You have to understand the context to what they say a Rafale is equals to 3 Mirages, it is in terms of variation roles. For precision bombing and air cover, Mirages will be equally effective.
So an equally effective aircraft with forty years of life should be preferred over a second hand aircraft with max 15-20 years of life remaining.

If the dassault assembly in France was still manufacturing mirages then IAF would have definitely opted for them 10 years back.
 
So an equally effective aircraft with forty years of life should be preferred over a second hand aircraft with max 15-20 years of life remaining.

If the dassault assembly in France was still manufacturing mirages then IAF would have definitely opted for them 10 years back.

Used Mirages with 15-20 years of life left in it, at around 20-30 million a piece is still a viable option given that the entire support infrastructure exists, and all the experience gathered by veterans.
 

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