India has finalised the Letter of Request (LoR) for acquiring 114 Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft for the Indian Air Force and is expected to formally send it to France within the coming weeks, marking a major step in one of India’s largest planned defence procurement programmes.
The proposed deal involves a significant domestic manufacturing component. Nearly 90 of the 114 fighter jets are expected to be manufactured in India through a partnership involving Dassault Aviation and an Indian defence partner, while the remaining aircraft are likely to be delivered directly in fly-away condition.
The Letter of Request is a formal government-to-government communication used to initiate defence procurement discussions under frameworks such as Intergovernmental Agreements (IGA) or Foreign Military Sales (FMS). Once France responds to the LoR with details related to pricing, timelines, logistics and support infrastructure, India is expected to proceed with issuing a formal Request for Proposal (RFP).
The procurement proposal has already received clearance from the Defence Acquisition Council. After negotiations are completed, the final contract will require approval from the Cabinet Committee on Security before signing.
India already operates 36 Rafale fighter jets in the Air Force inventory, while the Indian Navy is also preparing to induct 26 carrier-based Rafale M aircraft. Expanding the Rafale fleet is expected to provide operational advantages by reducing training, maintenance and logistics costs through an existing support ecosystem.
A major focus of the negotiations is expected to be indigenous manufacturing and technology participation. India has reportedly pushed for as much as 50 per cent indigenous content in the proposed aircraft, in line with the government’s Make in India initiative and its long-term goal of building domestic defence manufacturing capabilities.
Officials also indicated that future India-France defence cooperation may increasingly move toward co-design, co-development and co-production models rather than traditional buyer-seller arrangements. This could include future collaboration on combat aircraft engines, aerospace systems and advanced defence technologies.
The planned acquisition of 114 multirole fighter aircraft is considered critical for strengthening the Indian Air Force, which has been facing declining squadron strength amid growing regional security challenges. If finalised, the Rafale deal would become one of the most significant defence partnerships between India and France and a major boost to India’s domestic aerospace manufacturing ecosystem.
