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Mirage-2000 deal may get government nod
BANGALORE: The Mirage-2000 upgrade contract is on the table of the defence ministry. A crucial meeting between the Union defence minister and the three chiefs of the Indian armed forces is scheduled to be held on Friday, in which the deal might be announced.
Defence minister AK Antony will conduct the Unified Commanders' Meeting, an annual meeting-cum-review with the heads of the Indian Army, Indian Air Force and the Navy. Sources also have indicated that an announcement relating to the Mirage aircraft's retrofit could be on the agenda.
The three-year-old deal, expected to be about $2.4 billion, has remained unresolved as New Delhi and France's Dassault Aviation and Thales failed to arrive at a mutually agreeable price to get the job done.
While the contract is yet to be formally signed, the all-powerful Cabinet Committee on Security, which gives the final go-ahead for large procurements, has reportedly given its tacit approval for the deal.
The upgrade of the Mirage-2000H fighters was first mooted during French President Nicolas Sarkozy's visit to India in 2008. Although it was believed that the deal would get finalised during Mr Sarkozy's state visit last year, there were no announcements. The IAF's Mirage-2000H retrofit includes the integration of new avionics, radars, mission computers, glass cockpits, helmet-mounted displays, electronic warfare suites, weapon delivery and precision-targeting systems.
The upgrade is expected to provide the aircraft, which were originally inducted in 1985, with an additional 20-25 years of service. "Discussions about arming the upgraded aircraft with MICA multi-mission air-to-air missiles have entered the final stages," an IAF source said.
The IAF currently has 51 two-decade-old Mirage aircraft, used for air defence and ground attacks, in three squadrons based in Gwalior.
Initially four to six aircraft are to be upgraded in France, while the rest will be done in India by state-owned defence undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, with transfer of technology from Dassault and Thales.
The IAF has for long, argued that the upgrade would transform the aircraft into top-notch combat fighters. The Mirage, which was deemed to be the best combat aircraft in high-altitude conditions, was used to great effect by the IAF for precision strikes during the Kargil conflict, and helped liberate the heavily-defended Tiger Hill.
In March, Air Chief Marshal PV Naik had said that the differences over price and legal issues had blocked the upgrade progress, but had finally "concluded satisfactorily". Naik had said that he expected the MoD to make an announcement shortly.
The signing of the contract will provide an additional boost to Dassault Aviation, which is also one of the front-runners for the $11-billion Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft tender for 126 combat fighters for the IAF, which has now entered its penultimate phase.
Both Dassault's Rafale and the pan-European consortium-built Eurofighter Typhoon beat four other highly fancied bidders, including Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin's F-16IN Super Viper and Saab's JAS 39 Gripen.
It has also been speculated that Dassault had been using the Mirage upgrade as leverage once the MMRCA contract was drawing to a close. Its offering, Rafale, is so far in service only with the French Air Force.
Mirage-2000 deal may get government nod - The Economic Times
BANGALORE: The Mirage-2000 upgrade contract is on the table of the defence ministry. A crucial meeting between the Union defence minister and the three chiefs of the Indian armed forces is scheduled to be held on Friday, in which the deal might be announced.
Defence minister AK Antony will conduct the Unified Commanders' Meeting, an annual meeting-cum-review with the heads of the Indian Army, Indian Air Force and the Navy. Sources also have indicated that an announcement relating to the Mirage aircraft's retrofit could be on the agenda.
The three-year-old deal, expected to be about $2.4 billion, has remained unresolved as New Delhi and France's Dassault Aviation and Thales failed to arrive at a mutually agreeable price to get the job done.
While the contract is yet to be formally signed, the all-powerful Cabinet Committee on Security, which gives the final go-ahead for large procurements, has reportedly given its tacit approval for the deal.
The upgrade of the Mirage-2000H fighters was first mooted during French President Nicolas Sarkozy's visit to India in 2008. Although it was believed that the deal would get finalised during Mr Sarkozy's state visit last year, there were no announcements. The IAF's Mirage-2000H retrofit includes the integration of new avionics, radars, mission computers, glass cockpits, helmet-mounted displays, electronic warfare suites, weapon delivery and precision-targeting systems.
The upgrade is expected to provide the aircraft, which were originally inducted in 1985, with an additional 20-25 years of service. "Discussions about arming the upgraded aircraft with MICA multi-mission air-to-air missiles have entered the final stages," an IAF source said.
The IAF currently has 51 two-decade-old Mirage aircraft, used for air defence and ground attacks, in three squadrons based in Gwalior.
Initially four to six aircraft are to be upgraded in France, while the rest will be done in India by state-owned defence undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, with transfer of technology from Dassault and Thales.
The IAF has for long, argued that the upgrade would transform the aircraft into top-notch combat fighters. The Mirage, which was deemed to be the best combat aircraft in high-altitude conditions, was used to great effect by the IAF for precision strikes during the Kargil conflict, and helped liberate the heavily-defended Tiger Hill.
In March, Air Chief Marshal PV Naik had said that the differences over price and legal issues had blocked the upgrade progress, but had finally "concluded satisfactorily". Naik had said that he expected the MoD to make an announcement shortly.
The signing of the contract will provide an additional boost to Dassault Aviation, which is also one of the front-runners for the $11-billion Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft tender for 126 combat fighters for the IAF, which has now entered its penultimate phase.
Both Dassault's Rafale and the pan-European consortium-built Eurofighter Typhoon beat four other highly fancied bidders, including Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin's F-16IN Super Viper and Saab's JAS 39 Gripen.
It has also been speculated that Dassault had been using the Mirage upgrade as leverage once the MMRCA contract was drawing to a close. Its offering, Rafale, is so far in service only with the French Air Force.
Mirage-2000 deal may get government nod - The Economic Times
