French bag India’s largest defence order for fighter jets (Lead)
January 31st, 2012 - 7:44 pm ICT by IANS
New Delhi, Jan 31 (IANS) India’s largest ever defence deal, a $10.4 billion (Rs.52,000 crore) order for 126 fighter jets for the air force, has gone to France’s Dassault after over four years of a fiercely-fought bidding process.
Finally, it was a direct financial duel between Dassault and European consortium Eurofighter and Rafale pipped Typhoon with the lowest bid to emerge winner of what is also one of the largest such deals globally.
“Dassault has been informed that it has emerged L1 in the bid for 126 multi-role fighter aircraft tender,” a defence ministry official told IANS, referring to the lowest price quoted for the Rafale.
“But the contract will be signed only in the next financial year.”
The other four aircraft in the fray earlier were American firms Lockheed Martin’s F-16 and Boeing’s F/A-18, Russian United Aircraft Corporation’s MiG-35 and Swedish SAAB’s Gripen.
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- India opens combat plane tender bids; cost to go up - Nov 04, 2011
- Price talks for 126 jets to begin this month: IAF chief - Mar 10, 2011
- India to pick combat fighter by mid-December - Nov 18, 2011
- India set to pick $10.4-bn combat plane deal winner - Oct 07, 2011
- India set for last lap in $10.4-bn combat plane tender - Nov 03, 2011
- IAF to seal combat plane deal in November - Oct 08, 2011
- EADS, Dassault asked to extend combat jet bids till December - Apr 28, 2011
- US doubts over India's combat jet partner - Feb 18, 2011
- Defence ministry panel to consider combat jet deal next month - Sep 22, 2011
- Combat jet tender: India to finalise lowest bidder in six weeks - Jul 26, 2011
- India shops for combat aircraft at Farnborough - Jul 20, 2010
- Ratan Tata co-pilots Boeing fighter at air show - Feb 10, 2011
- Dasault wins $10.4 bn IAF jet fighter deal - Jan 31, 2012
Tags: air force, aircraft corporation, boeing, dassault, defence ministry, eurofighter, european consortium, fighter aircraft, fighter jets, gripen, India, lockheed martin, mig 35, ministry official, New Delhi, rafale, role fighter, saab, typhoon