Editorial
Welcoming the Rafale
By: TP News
Date: 10/9/2019 10:26:45 AM
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It is appropriate that the IAF took delivery of its firstfour Rafale fighter jets on the auspicious day of Vijay Dashami
It might be just a coincidence but the Air Force Day thisyear coincided with the auspicious occasion of Vijay Dashami and depending onwhere in India you are from, this day celebrates the victory of good over evil.This, in a year when the Indian Air Force (IAF) had its greatest moment in twodecades with the precisely planned Balakot strikes on Pakistani terrorist campsfollowed by the brilliant counter-attack on Pakistani planes as Wing CommanderAbhinandan Varthaman shot down a Pakistani F-16. But on this Air Force Day,India’s Defence Minister was not present and the freshly minted Air Chief RKSBhadauria took the salute at Hindon Airbase outside Delhi. Defence MinisterRajnath Singh is in Paris, France. Not for a junket but to receive the veryfirst batch of the IAF’s latest weapon, the Rafale.
This fighter jet, whose sordid acquisition saga has takenalmost two decades and whose need wasidentified in the aftermath of the Kargil War, will be remembered for sinkingthe Congress’ campaign for the 2019 general election. Thanks to Congress leaderRahul Gandhi’s obstinacy, it will provide a much-needed boost to the IAF’soffensive capabilities. However, with a planned order of just 36 aircraft, itwill not even remotely cover the yawning gap between India and China. It isalmost certain that there will be a follow-up order and now that the Oppositionhas been neutered in the country, that should pass without much controversy.But as the Air Chief said in his recent Press conference, India needs to investmoney heavily in the next fifth-generation fighters and catch up with China,which is already deploying its stealth-capable J-20 fighters in numbers. Itwill still take a few months before the first Rafale fighters actually land upon Indian shores but the induction of these new planes should be a matter ofpride for all of us and the Air Force in particular. On its 87th birthday, theIAF should feel mighty pleased with what it has achieved this past year,particularly while using ancient hardware. Now that it has a cutting-edgefighter, it should be able to fly higher and faster as well as attack harder.The Rafale is indeed a lovely birthday present to have and hopefully, willreplicate the power of Maa Durga in defeating demons.