Indian Navy To Join Forces With IAF To Float Combined Procurement Tender For New Fighter Jets

Following an indigenous development proposal tabled by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Indian Navy has taken a key step.

The naval branch of the armed forces will combine its procurement tender for multi-role carrier-based fighter jet with the Indian Air Force’s tender for 114 fighters that is in progress currently, The Hindu reports.

“We have the MiG-29K operating from the Vikramaditya and will operate from the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC)-I. To replace them, we have taken up a case for the Multi-Role Carrier Borne Fighters (MRCBF) which we are trying to do along with the IAF,” Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh was quoted as saying last week. Another Navy official mentioned to the publication that they had approached the IAF and are awaiting a response from them regarding this issue.

With the new jets under development and financial constraints, the Navy has reduced the number of required fighters to 36 from 57. Boeing and Dassault Aviation have responded to the demands with their F-18 Super Hornet and Rafale jets respectively. The companies claim that their aircrafts is adept at operating off ski-jump of the Vikramaditya and even the IAC-I Vikrant in the future.

Admiral Singh even mentioned that the DRDO along with the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) have put forth the proposal of the Twin Engine Carrier Based Deck Fighter (TEBDF), which the Navy is working to acquire.