NEW DELHI – Desperately short of fighters, the Indian Air Force (IAF) ismoving the government to buy an additional 21 Russian-made MiG -29 groundattack and air-defence aircraft, a senior official with knowledge of thedevelopment said.
IAF needs a minimum of 42 squadrons [each comprising 16 -18 fighters], buthas only 30. More squadrons will be decommissioned in the coming months.
India is expected to get first Rafale fighter jets — the French-made mediummulti-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) — in September 2019.
The Indian Air Force already has three squadrons of MiG-29. All three arepositioned along the western borders.
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The Indian Navy too uses the naval version of the MiG-29 fighters. They arepositioned on the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
Earlier, in February 2019, a team of senior Indian Air Force officialsrushed to Russia to examine the fleet of the MiG 29 fighters.
