No Sir things are a bit mixed upramana wrote:First post on this page says Mirage 2000 performance in Kargil spurred the IAF to buy more.
Dassault came back and said the M2K line is shutting down and no can do but we have Rafale.
The original idea was to get replacement for the 50 odd M2Ks.
Someone added the phased out MiG-21 to the mix and increased the quantity to 126 MMRCA in 2000 itself.
That's where the gotala started with increased numbers.
The replacement for the Mig-21 is not the Rafale/MMRCA.
The 20+20+ 83 Tejas and the 200 odd Tejas MWF are to replace the MiG fleet. Total 123+200 i.e. 323 Tejas.
To put in perspective, India bought ~ 550 French jets since the first Dassault Oruguan fighter in 1953.
Essentially India was the third leg for the French aircraft industry : French Air Force, India, & Gulf countries.
1) Mirage 2000 performance in Kargil spurred the IAF to buy more.- Yes Both Govt and George Fernandes and NDA were ready
2) Then Tehelka and coffin scam happened, Govt was on the Back foot was afraid of scandals and single Vendor situation, all Tehelka cases were closed in 2012 by CBI citing lack of evidence
3) Ordered 10 M-2000 as stop gap method and was running normal procedures and negotiations to get 126 M-2000-5 18 fly away and 108 licenced built in India
4) in 2004-05 2000-5 acquisition was called as a single vendor situation and hence skipped. USD 10.8 Billion MMRCA competition started in 2006.
5) Dassualt at that time said expecting the procedures to take some said the M-2000 line is closing, cant wait forever and fielded Rafale in MMRCA contest
MMRCA turned out into a fiasco with nothing ordered till 2014 with even Su 30 MKI fleet brought down to 38%. it seems since some members int he family have been assassinated, others are afraid and like to keep our enemies satisfied by keeping our armed in an incompetent state so that they can best do a defensive battle and cannot take offensive measures.