As reported in Times of India, India has asked France to arm the first four Rafale fighters
with the Meteor air-to-air missiles.
India is expected to receive the first Rafale fighters in May of next year.
Indian Defense Minister has conveyed to France to deliver the at least 8-10 Meteor beyond
visual range (BVR) missiles along with the four jets.
Earlier it was thought that the Meteor will be delivered at a later date.
The Indian side now wants the Rafale to fly with Meteor from the very beginning.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why Pakistan & China will have no answer to India’s
French made Rafale armed with Meteor missile?
Let’s get in the details.
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India had selected Rafale to strength its dwindling fighter fleet after an extensive
evaluation.
The contest featured six fighter aircraft: Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Dassault Rafale,
Eurofighter Typhoon, Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon, Mikoyan MiG-35, and Saab
JAS 39 Gripen.
On 27 April 2011, after an intensive and detailed technical examination by the Indian Air Force,
it reduced the bidders to two fighters—Eurofighter Typhoon and Dassault Rafale.
On 31 January 2012, it was announced that Dassault Rafale had won the competition due
to its lower life-cycle cost.
Dassault Rafale is currently the most advanced fighter jet deployed by France.
It is a twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault
Aviation.
Equipped with a wide range of weapons, the Rafale is intended to perform air supremacy,
interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike
and nuclear deterrence missions.
The Rafale is referred to as an "omnirole" aircraft by Dassault.
India is getting 36 of these jets with the possible addition of another 36 in future.
The request needs to be seen in the context of the recent aerial skirmish between Indian
and Pakistani fighters.
Viewers may note that on 27th Feb, a day after the bombing of the JeM terrorist training
facility in Pakistan by the Indian Air Force, a short air battle ensued between Indian and
Pakistani fighters.
The Indian Sukhoi-30MKIs and other jets scrambled to intercept the incoming Pakistani fighters
had found it difficult to engage the F-16s as they were outranged.
The Pakistani F-16s were armed with the AIM-120C advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles
(AMRAAMs), which have a range of about 105 km or around 65 miles whereas the Indian fighters
had Russian made R77 that has a range of around 80 km or around 50 miles.
Pakistani fighters fired several of them at the Sukhoi-30MKIs before the latter could
even get into their firing range.
The Su 30MKIs were able to jam the missile and they fell to the ground harmlessly.
Indian Air Force had displayed parts of the AIM-120C-5 fired by the F-16 during a press
briefing.
Though one of the Indian Mig 21 piloted by Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman shot down
a retreating Pakistani F16 with short-range R 73 missile, this was a wakeup call for Indian
Air Force.
It was clear that a better Air to Air missile was needed in the inventory.
Meteor missile is developed by MBDA and is based on the requirement derived from 6 nations
and is currently considered to be the most lethal air to air missile in the world.
The missile is designed from grounds up to meet not only today’s threats but also the
future once.
It is capable of engaging fast agile jets to small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles as well
as cruise missiles in extreme weather conditions.
Meteor has super aerodynamics and propulsion performance enabling it to pull off intense
turn angles when pursuing an agile target like a modern super maneuverable fighter.
Currently, it will be deployed with Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault Rafale, and Saab JAS 39 Gripen.
It will also be integrated with F 35 going forward.
The main differentiator of Meteor is its range.
With 150 km or around 93 miles range, it provides an ultra-long-range interception capability
against fighter sized targets critical in attaining 'First look-First-Shoot-First-Kill'
capability.
The only other air-to-air missile, which has a range similar to Meteor, is the AIM-120D.
Meteor’s range will ensure that Indian fighters will outgun any missile that can be unleashed
by Pakistani or Chinese jets.
Meteor also has excellent kinetic performance due to its state of art propulsion system
which utilizes ramjet.
A conventional solid-fuel booster accelerates the Meteor after launch, like most air-to-air
missiles.
But after that, the missile uses ramjet propulsion.
Speeding through the air, the missile opens up an intake channel, allowing air to rush
into the ramjet engine, which heats up the oxygen and propels the supersonic missile
to Mach 4.
Not only that, the missile can adjust how much oxygen it breathes, conserving energy
during the coast phase, only to take a deep breath in the final moments before hitting
a target.
The result is that if a targeted plane tries to dodge out of the way, Meteor can overcome
it by summoning more thrust, and thus more maneuverability, during those critical final
few seconds.
The engine's two air intakes, positioned on both sides of the lower part of the missile's
body are shaped to reduce the missile's Radar Cross Section (RCS) and gives it a stealthy
profile.
According to the MBDA, in a head-on engagement the Meteor provides a no-escape zone 3 times
greater than that of a conventionally powered missile.
With the Meteor launched in pursuit of a target—a tail-chase engagement—the Meteor is 5 times
as lethal as a conventional equivalent such as the American AMRAAM.
The no-escape zone is an aerial combat term for a cone-shaped area determined by the missile's
capabilities -- from where a targeted aircraft cannot escape solely using its own maneuverability.
To survive the no-escape zone, a fighter jet has to be able to jam (electronic counter
measures) the seeker of the incoming missile or deceive it by firing chaff ( strips of
metal foil) to obstruct radar detection.
Meteor uses different guidance for mid-course navigation and terminal phase.
Initial guidance is provided by the Inertial Navigation System (INS), combined with updates
from aircraft through a datalink.
In the terminal phase, as the missile nears the target, Active Radar homing kicks in.
Active radar homing is a missile guidance method in which a missile contains a radar
transmitter and receiver, and the electronics necessary for it to find and track its target
autonomously.
To ensure total target destruction, the missile is equipped with a combination of SAAB's Dynamic
proximity and impact fuses, and a fragmentation warhead that is detonated at the optimal point
to maximize chances of target termination.
Air superiority is key to any modern-day battle scenario.
A potent fighter armed with a lethal air to air missile can change the dynamics of air
battles.
This will be the exact scenario when Indian Air Force gets the Rafale armed with Meteor.
Meteor’s capabilities makes it a game-changer.
Pakistan and China currently doesn’t have any missile of this class in their combat
inventories.
Add to this, India is also getting the S 400 air defense system from Russia which is considered
to the best in the world.
This will further enhance India’s ability to repeal any Pakistani or Chinese attack.