The sources said that the Indian Air Force would be retiring 10 fighter aircraft squadrons by the year 2037.
With a high-level committee having accepted the need for getting new multirole fighter jets, the Indian Air Force is looking to start induction of these planes in the next four to five years through a fast tracked global tender. Defence sources told media that the induction of 114 multirole fighter jets would help the Indian Air Force to maintain its squadron strength in next 10 years along with the ingenious fighter jets including the different versions of the LCA including the Mark 1A and the Mark-2.
A high-level committee headed by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh recently submitted its report to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and has accepted the need for getting 114 multirole fighter aircraft for the Indian Air Force to help it enhance its combat capabilities.
The Indian Air Force is looking to achieve the number of 60 fighter aircraft squadrons by the year 2047 and feels that the induction of the MRFA jets in next five to ten years would be critical to achieve the numbers required to be able to tackle a two front war. Sources said the IAF is relying in a big way on indigenous fighter jet and engine projects for achieving the required strength.
The fleets which would be looking at exit from the Indian Air Force in next 10-12 years completely would be the Jaguar, Mirage-2000 and the MiG-29s, they said. On the fighter aircraft competition, the sources said the aircraft likely to be part of the global tender include the Rafale, Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon, MiG-35 and the F-16 aircraft high have already taken part in the previous tender for 126 multirole combat aircraft and have already been evaluated. The only new entrant likely to be in the race this time is the F-15 Strike Eagle fighter aircraft from the American firm Boeing.
The Indian Air Force is also looking to hold limited trials to ascertain the capabilities of the participating aircraft to fast-track the tender process. The Indian Air Force has been seeing a downfall in its numbers due to phasing out of older aircraft of the MiG series and delays in the induction of new indigenous aircraft like the LCA Mark1 and Mark1A. The projects are likely to get delayed further due to supply chain issues faced by the American firms due to Covid and commitments to provide supplies to its allies engaged in wars in Europe and the Middle East.
The Indian Air Force has been able to induct only 36 Rafale aircraft, which are in the 4.5-plus generation category, and given it some kind of edge over its adversaries in the neighbourhood.