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French defence company Dassault Aviation SA’s Rafale and the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co.’s (EADS) Eurofighter Typhoon are on the pruned shortlist for the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) order.
Boeing’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin’s F-16IN Super Viper—both from the US and till recently seen as among the frontrunners for the deal—Russia’s Mikoyan MiG-35 and Sweden’s Saab JAS 39 Gripen are the contenders that did not make the cut.
“The fact that the Americans are out of the shortlist clearly indicates that the IAF and the Indian government went purely by technical parameters, and not so much by strategic considerations,” said Anit Mukherjee, an analyst with the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi. “Having said that, the American absence could lessen India’s leverage while negotiating costs.”
Retired brigadier and defence analyst Rahul K. Bhosale agreed the American aircraft were technically inferior to the Europeans jets. “India needs a 4.5-plus generation aircraft, which is what the Eurofighter and the Rafale offer, while Boeing and Lockheed Martin are reaching the end of their lifecycles,” he said.
Boeing’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin’s F-16IN Super Viper—both from the US and till recently seen as among the frontrunners for the deal—Russia’s Mikoyan MiG-35 and Sweden’s Saab JAS 39 Gripen are the contenders that did not make the cut.
“The fact that the Americans are out of the shortlist clearly indicates that the IAF and the Indian government went purely by technical parameters, and not so much by strategic considerations,” said Anit Mukherjee, an analyst with the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) in New Delhi. “Having said that, the American absence could lessen India’s leverage while negotiating costs.”
Retired brigadier and defence analyst Rahul K. Bhosale agreed the American aircraft were technically inferior to the Europeans jets. “India needs a 4.5-plus generation aircraft, which is what the Eurofighter and the Rafale offer, while Boeing and Lockheed Martin are reaching the end of their lifecycles,” he said.
