NEW DELHI – Whether the Rafale deal is a scam or the best thing for India’sdefence is for more eminent people to debate.
Let me, meanwhile, list four facts emerging from the February 26-27 airskirmishes to bring the story of what should be called the real Rafalescandal, top Indian journalist and defence analyst Shekar Gupta has said.
*In the Rajouri-Mendhar sector air skirmish a day after the Indian AirForces’ (IAF) Balakot strikes, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) was able tocreate surprise and local superiority — technological and numerical — in achosen battlefield.
It struck in daylight when least expected, and perfectly timed to attackthe changeover of IAF AWAC patrols.
The outnumbered IAF pilots (12 aircraft of three vastly different types),scrambled from various bases, and showed the presence of mind not to walkinto the ambush set for them, but they failed to deliver a deterrentpunishment on PAF.
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* Four Sukhoi-30s, the IAF’s most powerful air-superiority aircraft, wereinvolved in the melee at beyond visual range (BVR).
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They were surprised by the PAF F-16s firing their American AMRAAM missilesfrom so far that their own radar/computer/missiles were not able to givethem a “firing solution”. Translated: India’s best fighter, whichconstitutes half of the IAF’s combat force, was outranged and outgunned.
* Fortunately, two of the upgraded Mirage-2000s were on patrol. These havenew French missiles (MICA, or Missile d’Interception, de combatd’autodefense), which are the exact peers of the F-16/AMRAAM.
They were able to lock on to some of the PAF planes, which dropping theirSouth African origin, stand-off weapons (SOWs).
It was a closer call than we think.
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