French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in India on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) for a three-day visit. He has come here to participate in the AI ​​Impact Summit which started from February 16, but during his visit, the mega deal can also be approved under which 114 Rafales are to be purchased. These Rafales will be available to the Indian Army by 2030.

India will spend Rs 3.25 lakh crore to buy 114 Rafale. In terms of price, this is considered to be India’s biggest military deal so far. Recently Indonesia has also purchased 42 Rafale jets from France. In the year 2022, the then government of Probowo Subianto had signed a deal with French aerospace company Dassault Aviation.

Indonesia had purchased 42 Rafale for 8.1 billion dollars i.e. about 68 thousand crore rupees. According to this, the price of one Rafale comes to Rs 1,747 crore. At the same time, India can spend Rs 3.25 lakh crore on the deal and accordingly one Rafale aircraft will cost India Rs 2,850 crore. In such a situation, the question arising in the minds of people is whether France is selling Rafale to India at an expensive price, or why Rafale is costing India Rs 1,000 crore.

What is the truth?
The reality is that India is paying Rs 2,850 for a Rafale aircraft because along with the aircraft, it is also buying missiles like Meteor and Scalp, precision guided bombs like Hammer, full mission simulator for training, long-term maintenance and spare parts and technology transfer of Rafale. This is the entire life cycle cost of the Rafale aircraft and accordingly this aircraft is becoming cheaper for India.

Rafale will be made in India
In the year 2016, India had purchased 36 Rafale and last year the naval variant of Rafale was purchased. Accordingly, the Air Force has 36 Rafales and the Navy has 26 Rafales for the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. This deal is also special because this time 96 Rafales can be manufactured at Dassault Reliance Aerospace Limited (DRAL) in Nagpur, India, while 18 Rafales will be manufactured in France. The Rafale aircraft which are currently with the Indian Army were manufactured in France only. From 2030 to 2035, the total number of Rafale aircraft with India will increase to 176.

India is going to make such a big deal because the Air Force does not have the number of fighter planes it needs. Currently there are only 29 squadrons, whereas 42 squadrons are required. There are 16-18 fighter jets in a squadron.

Important agreements in the defense sector are going to be signed between the two countries during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to India to attend the AI ​​Summit (17-19 February). These include making joint helicopters and making hammer bombs. It is believed that during this time, Macron and Prime Minister Narendra Modi can also make important announcements regarding 114 Make in India Rafale fighter jets.

India and France will jointly make helicopters and hammer bombs

The Defense Ministry issued a statement on Sunday (15 February 2026) saying that the Airbus company of France (Europe) is going to jointly manufacture the H-125 light utility helicopter with the Tata company in Vemagal (Karnataka) near Bengaluru. Macron and PM Modi will virtually inaugurate this plant. During this time, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and Defense Minister of France will be present in the plant. These LUH helicopters will be made for the Indian Army.

French Defense Minister Catherine Vatarin, who is visiting India with Macron, will also be present during the agreement with Defense Minister Rajnath Singh in Bengaluru on 17 February to make Hammer Bomb in India. France’s Safran company manufactures these hammer bombs and they are launched from Rafale. These highly agile modular munition extended range (HAMMER), which can hit the ground from the sky, is a stand-off weapon (bomb) which has a range of about 70 kilometers.

India used hammer bomb during Operation Sindoor

During Operation Sindoor, these hammer bombs were used by the Indian Air Force to destroy the headquarters of terrorist organizations Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba operating from Pakistan. This hammer bomb can also be fired from Mirage-2000 and indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas. This is the reason why these bombs will now be made in India.

According to the Defense Ministry, there will be an agreement between Rajnath Singh and the French Defense Minister in Bengaluru on defense cooperation between the two countries (India and France) for the next 10 years. Under this agreement, for the first time, each other’s officers are going to be deployed in the armies of both the countries. This will be the first time that soldiers from any other country will be deployed in the Indian Army.

Rafale gets green signal for manufacturing in India

Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), the apex committee of the Defense Ministry, on Thursday (12 February 2026) had given the green signal for the manufacturing of French fighter jet Rafale in India under Make in India. Under this deal, France’s Dassault company, in collaboration with an indigenous (Indian) company, will manufacture 114 Rafale fighter jets in India. It is believed that during Macron’s visit, both the countries can make important announcements regarding this Make in India Rafale fighter aircraft.

India is now going to become self -sufficient towards creating fighter jet engines. In association with Fans, India will develop a new powerful jet engine for its indigenous fifth generation stealth fighter jet, which will further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Safran, a famous company in India and France, will jointly create a powerful engine of 120 Kn, which will give hyper power to the Indian Air Force. This move of India caused a big shock to America because the Trump administration was expecting this project. The US felt that India would buy the GE 414 engine for this project, but India had finalized the deal with Safron.

France will transfer 100% technology to India

The Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) will soon send this project to the Cabinet Committee on Security for approval. In this project, Safran, a large French company, will transfer 100 % technology to India, so that the new engine of 120 kilonutons in India can be developed, design, test, certification and produced.

According to the Times of India report, an official said, “DRDO has approved Safran’s proposal, which already makes different types of helicopter engines in India. The fifth generation is the best option for fighter aircraft (AMCA). The project will cost about $ 7 billion.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh confirmed the deal

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh confirmed the project on Friday (22 August 2025) speaking at The Economic Times World Leaders Forum. He said, ‘We have stepped forward towards making our fifth generation fighter jets. We have also moved towards the manufacture of jet engine in India itself. We are going to start engine manufacturing in India in association with French company Safran.

American company shocks

Legendary companies like Rolls Royce Royce of UK and GE of America were also claiming this project. Completing this project with France means that the initial AMCA units will fly from the GE-414 engine.

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Pakistan Experts Qamar Chema on India: India has approved a ‘mega deal’ for the sale of 26 Rafale Marine fighter aircraft from France. In media reports, government sources were quoted as saying that the deal of more than Rs 63,000 crore is expected to be signed soon. The Indian Navy will get 22 single-seater jets as well as four twin-seater variants. India will get a large package, which will include the maintenance of the fleet, logistical support, training of personnel and offset responsibilities for indigenous manufacturing components. On this issue, Pakistani experts Qamar Cheema spoke on her YouTube channel The Qamar Cheema show. He said that this is really a very big deal, which clearly shows that India is trying to increase its strength. They especially want to increase their strength against China, with the help of which they can compete with dragons in the Indian Ocean.

Qamar Cheema said that India is making a deal of $ 7 billion from France for Rafael. From this you can guess how much money India has. On the other hand our Pakistan is begging 1-1 billion dollars. They go in front of every other country and plead for money. In contrast, India makes a big deal of $ 7 billion. He says that we are expanding our strength. For this, they are modernizing their Navy, Army.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojvzl4C8GG4

India is surrounded by its enemies on three fronts
Pakistani experts Qamar Cheema said that in today’s time India is surrounded by its enemies on three fronts. The first is China, the second Pakistan and now the third is Bangladesh. For this, India is constantly engaged in strengthening its military and navy power. This is the reason why he does not want to keep himself weak in any field and is dealing with billions of rupees. India better knows that China can present a challenge for it in the Indian Ocean. For this reason, India has done the Rafale deal, so that its strength increases.

When will India get Rafale Marine Jet Plane?
The Cabinet Committee on Security Affairs (CCS) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the deal. Rafale Marine Jet aircraft will be deployed on indigenous aircraft carriers in India. This will significantly increase the aerial power of the Navy in the sea. Rafael Marine is more advance than the Rafale fighter jets present in India. Its engine is more powerful. According to the report, the supply of Rafale Marine fighter jets is estimated to start in about four years. The Navy is expected to receive the first batch by the end of 2029. The entire fleet is likely to join by 2031.