MBDA Naval Cruise Missile Conducts Final Qualification Flight

The Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA) conducted a successful final qualification flight of the MBDA naval cruise missile, with a launch from a ground-based site at the Biscarosse test center, the procurement office said in a statement.

The missile is designed to strike high-value protected sites from long range, a DGA spokesman told journalists. Additional test firings will be conducted from the French Navy’s FREMM frigate after the missile is fitted to the warship next year.

Mistral Decision Coming Next Month

      French President François Hollande will decide in November whether France will go ahead with a delivery of the Mistral-class helicopter carrier to Russia, Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Tuesday.

Sources have said previously that a decision was expected in either late October or early November.

“In early September, the president said that if the political conditions did not change, he could not imagine authorizing a delivery,” Le Drian told journalists at the Euronaval trade show.

Why India needs to rethink the Rafale deal

Russia India Report

Fighter planes fall into two categories – the hunters and the hunted. The French are pitching their Rafale as the dogfight duke that is the crème de la crème of jet fighters. But the Russian side disagrees. Alexander Kadakin, Russia's ambassador in India, says Chinese-made Sukhoi-27s would be able to swat the Rafales like “mosquitoes on an August night.”

At this point it’s pointless to deliver the verdict on which aircraft is superior. The Rafale is a largely unknown commodity in aviation circles. Like most French fighters, it is most likely an unassuming, unspectacular but honest aircraft.

The Stealthy Barracuda UAV Is Germany's Future Flying Force

After the end of hostilities in WWII, France and Germany have become surprisingly close. The two nations are stalwart proponents of expanded European Union integration and are regularly referred to as the EU’s “twin engine.” But on the issue of unmanned aerial platform, the two simply cannot agree. So while France and its cohorts are developing the nEUROn, Germany is building the stealth Barracuda.

India to finalize $15 billion Rafale deal by March, Indian Air Force says

Source: REUTERS

                                      

India will finalize a $15 billion deal to buy 126 Rafale fighter jets from France’s Dassault Aviation by March 2014, an Indian Air Force official said on Thursday, after the deal had been held up by differences over local manufacturing.

India picked the Rafale for exclusive negotiations in January 2012 after a bidding contest against Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft, made by a consortium involving EADS, Finmeccanica and BAE Systems.

IAF to hold exercise with UK and France in 2014

Indian Air Force will conduct two joint air exercises , christened “Indradhanush” with the UK and “Garuda” with France, in 2014 with a gap of six months, sources said. The last exercise was held in 2010.    

       While the “Garuda” exercise with the French Air Force is likely to take place in the IAF base in Gwalior, the exercise with the Royal Air Force may happen in the RAF base in Waddington. Venue of the 2010 edition of “Indradhanush” was Kalaikunda, while “Garuda” was held in Istres, France.
         The exercises assume additional significance in the IAF training schedule after the last minute cancellation of “Exercise Red Flag” in July at the US Air Force (USAF) base in Nevada, sources said. The USAF has abandoned plans of holding the exercise citing budgetary constraints. Conceived after the Vietnam war, “Red Flag” is the world’s most challenging air-exercise that provides air force pilots with realistic combat experience. Participation in the exercise was earlier restricted to close US allies, but was extended to India after bilateral relations between New Delhi and Washington improved in the last decade.

Indo-French naval exercise off Goa coast on April 17

            India and France will be conducting a joint naval exercise off the Goa coast on April 17, which is mainly aimed at honing the skills of Indian Navy in tackling anti-piracy and anti-submarine operations.
           "The 30-hour exercise would begin on April 17 ", said Commander Guillaume Fontarensky, commanding the anti-submarine Destroyer 'FNS Montcalm', currently docked at Goa's Mormugao Port Trust (MPT), before initiating exercises with the Indian Navy. 
             The exercise is the part of a larger naval drill held annually between the French and Indian navies. "Such kind of smaller exercises are held to increase the understanding between the two navies in between the larger drill", said Fontarensky. "The exercise, scheduled off the Goa coast, would hone the skills of Indian Navy in anti-submarine and anti-piracy operations", the commander said, adding a common procedure would be developed by both the navies to fight against submarines of hostile nations. He said the details about participation from Indian counterpart would be known only after the session on Monday.
              Meanwhile, Francois Richier, French Ambassador in India, told reporters that such an exchange was crucial for ensuring safety of the Indian Ocean. "The threat can come from anywhere, even from under the sea. This is very important for ensuring safety of the Indian Ocean", the Ambassador said, adding the threat of piracy in Indian Ocean has diminished to a great extent on the back of crackdown on the sea brigands by various navies. "The number of attacks by pirates has decreased of late, compared to the past", Richier said.

First Scorpene submarine to be delivered in 2014

        After hitting rough waters for several years with bribery allegations, the first of the six Scorpene submarines, ordered by the Indian Navy as part of technology transfer from France, is to be delivered in 2014, French ambassador Francois Richier said on Saturday. The rest five submarines are to be delivered every year.
         "The first submarine would be ready by 2014, heralding an important and strategic tie-up between both the nations on the defence front", said Richier told mediapersons on board French naval destroyer FNS Montcalm, anchored at Goa's Mormugao harbour for a naval exercise. 'Project-75' is under way at Mazagon Docks Ltd (MDL) in cooperation with French company DCNS.
          "It is a full transfer of technology, something we don't do with everybody. Defence component of India-French relations is very important to us," said Richier. 
            The Scorpene deal has been under a cloud of controversy with the government conducting an inquiry into financial irregularities committed by a former director in-charge of the whopping Rs 23,562-crore project, which has been dogged by huge time and cost overruns. Defence minister AK Antony told the Lok Sabha last month that a complaint was received alleging financial irregularities against the then director in-charge of the Scorpene submarine project in a defence shipyard (MDL) and the complaint is under inquiry.