India signs $7.4 billion deal to buy 26 Rafale fighter jets

By Shivam Patel and Surbhi Misra

(Reuters) -India signed a deal with France on Monday to buy 26 Rafale fighter aircraft worth 630 billion rupees ($7.4 billion) for its navy, the Indian defence ministry said in a statement.

India will buy 22 single-seater and four twin-seater fighters, made by France's Dassault Aviation, the ministry said, in a deal that would boost the Asian country's defence ties with its second-largest arms supplier.

"The delivery of these aircraft would be completed by 2030, with the crew undergoing training in France and India," the ministry said, adding that the deal is expected to generate thousands of jobs and revenue for a large number of businesses.

The purchase was approved earlier this month by India's security cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Reuters reported.

The Indian Air Force currently operates 36 Rafale fighters, while the navy's aircraft fleet mainly comprises Russian MiG-29 jets.

India is seeking to modernise its military, reduce dependence on Russian-origin equipment, and boost domestic weapons production to supply forces deployed along two contentious borders with Pakistan and China.

The Indian navy has flagged China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean over the past decade, with Beijing operating dual-purpose vessels in the region and maintaining a military base in Djibouti since 2017.

It also marks another step in India's long-standing reliance on French military hardware, including Mirage 2000 jets bought in the 1980s and Scorpene-class submarines ordered in 2005.

($1 = 84.9950 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Shivam Patel and Surbhi Misra; Editing by YP Rajesh, Bernadette Baum, Aidan Lewis and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)