Rafale Jets Arrive In India After 8 Hour Non-Stop Flight

The Indian Air Force (IAF) today received three more Rafale combat jets it ordered from France's Dassault Aviation in September 2016.

"The IAF pilots brought home the second batch of three Rafale aircraft today after flying non-stop from France in a ferry that lasted for over 8 hours," Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said.

The aircraft joined five more that were delivered in July this year.

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The IAF said the jets arrived in India's Jamnagar airbase from Istres airbase in France at 8.14PM on November 4. They covered a distance of over 3700 nautical miles with three in-flight refuellings.

The aircraft are part of a 36 aircraft deal which India has signed with Dassault Aviation, France. The deal includes weapons such as Scalp and Meteor missiles. As part of the deal Dassualt will set up depot-level maintenance.