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Check Out All Active Fighter Jets With The Indian Air Force (IAF) – Rafale to MIG-21
Indian Air Force is one of the most powerful Air Arms in the world and possesses some of the most advanced fighter Jets.
Also, the Indian Air Force uses a wide variety of advanced fighter aircraft for securing the country's air space and borders. This includes the likes of French, Russian and Indigenous fighter aircraft.
That being said, the current active fighter Jets in the Indian Air Force includes the likes of Dassault Rafale, Sukhoi Su-30MKI, MiG-29UPG, HAL Tejas, Mirage 2000, SEPECAT Jaguar, and MiG-21 Bison. Out of these fighter Jets, the MiG-21 Bison is the country's first supersonic fighter jet.
MiG-21 Bison
The MiG-21 is a fighter and interceptor aircraft of Soviet origin. It was first introduced in the year 1959 and 11,496 units of the aircraft have been built to this date. Thanks to high production, the MiG-21 was very affordable and was exported to many countries.
India is the largest operator of MiG-21 fighter jets and the country has introduced more than 1,200 units of MiG-21 fighter jets into its air force. However, only 113 units of MiG-21s are currently in operation in India as most of the earlier versions of the aircraft has been phased out.
At present, the Indian Air Force is looking forward to decommissioning all MiG-21s by the year 2025. Furthermore, the MiG-21 has been plagued by safety problems and more than 170 Indian pilots and 40 civilians have been killed in MiG-21-related accidents. As a result, this aircraft is also called 'flying coffin'.
SEPECAT Jaguar
The SEPECAT Jaguar is an Anglo-French attack aircraft. Moreover, the Indian Air Force is the single largest export customer of the SEPECAT Jaguar aircraft with an order worth $1 Billion back in 1978. In fact, this model was chosen ahead of other aircraft such as Dassault Mirage F1 and Saab Viggen.
Despite its age, the SEPECAT Jaguar is considered a fast, stable and effective long-range strike aircraft in IAF. In fact, 125 units of SEPECAT Jaguar aircraft are being upgraded to the latest DARIN III system. This will make the aircraft much better than before with more advanced avionics.
MiG-29
The Mikoyan MiG-29 is a twin-engine, air superiority fighter aircraft designed by the Soviet Union. The MiG-29 was first introduced in the year 1983 and over the years developed as a multirole fighter jet. Other than that, the Indian Air Force is the MiG-29's first international customer.
At present, it is noted that there are 78 units of MiG-29 aircraft in India, and these fighter jets were extensively used during the 1999 Kargil war, where they provided fighter escort for the Mirage 2000 aircraft. Thanks to its good operational records, Indian even upgraded all its MiG-29s. India even placed an order for 21 more units of MiG-29 aircraft with Russia despite the model was recently grounded by Russia regarding the safety of the aircraft.
Mirage 2000
The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French, multi role, single-engine, 4th-generation fighter aircraft. This aircraft was first introduced back in 1984 and entered Indian Air Force a year later as a response to Pakistan buying US-made F-16 fighter jets. In fact, the new Mirage 2000 was much more advanced than the F-16 aircraft of Pakistan.
At present, IAF has 50 units of Mirage 2000 fighter jets and the country even approved a $2.2 billion package to upgrade all Mirage 2000 aircraft currently in service with the IAF. This upgrade includes the likes of provision for night-vision capable glass cockpits, upgraded navigation, multi-mode multi-layered radar, fully integrated electronic warfare suite, MICA missile compatibility and more.
HAL Tejas
HAL Tejas is an indigenously developed single engine, delta wing, light multirole fighter aircraft. This aircraft is part of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme that commenced in the 1980s. Moreover, the HAL Tejas is currently the smallest and lightest in its class of supersonic combat aircraft.
At present, there are three variants of the HAL Tejas aircraft. This includes the likes of Tejas Mark 1, Tejas Trainer, and Tejas Mark 1A. The latter is an enhanced version of theTejas Mark 1 aircraft with upgrades such as EL/M-2052, Uttam AESA radar, self-protection jammer, radar warning receiver, ECM pod and more. Moreover, more than 40 units of the aircraft have been built and IAF plans to procure 324 units of the aircraft.
Sukhoi SU-30MKI
The Sukhoi SU-30MKI can be considered the backbone of the Indian Air Force and the fighter jet is a multirole air superiority fighter designed by Russia but built under licence by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). This model was first introduced in the year 2002 and more than 272 units of aircraft has been built to this date.
Despite its large size, the Sukhoi SU-30MKI has high angle of attack (AOA) and it is a highly manoeuvrable aircraft with a distinct advantage in dogfight situations. In fact, during a simulation exercise, the RAF Air Chief Marshal Glenn Torpy praised the MKI's dogfight ability and calling the aircraft "absolutely masterful in dogfights".
Dassault Rafale
The Dassault Rafale is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraf and on of the most advanced 4.5-gen fighter aircraft in the world. Indian Air Force inducted the French aircraft after the MRCA competition. In fact, by july 2021, a total of 26 units of Rafale aircrafts were delivered to India.
Speaking about the Rafale, the French aircraft is a highly agile aircraft with plenty of technology for BVR combat. Moreover, the Dassault Rafale has already proved its mettle several times against formidable aircraft such as the Sukhoi SU-30MKI, EuroFighter Typhoon, F-16 and more. Thanks to its excellent records, there has been interest from the IAF and Navy to procure more Rafale aircraft in the future.
Thoughts About IAF
The Indian Air Force is one of the most respected Air Arms in the world. As such, to maintain such a reputation, the Indian Air Force must not only be at the top of its game but it must also be given the right set of tools. Moreover, the Indian Air Force currently has the necessary tools to deal with any international threat as well.
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