IAF Rafales enter Indian airspace, establish contact with Navy's INS Kolkata, exchange greetings

Ambala: India's incoming Rafale fighter jets which are expected to land at the Ambala Air Force base at around 2 PM today (29 July), established contact with Indian Navy warship INS Kolkata situated in the Western Arabian Sea.

#HEAR: Indian #Rafale contingent establishes contact with Indian Navy warship INS Kolkata deployed in Western Arabian Sea. pic.twitter.com/NOnzKOo2fa

— ANI (@ANI) July 29, 2020

Soon after entering the Indian airspace, the incoming Rafales jets exchanged greetings with the Indian Naval warship INS Kolkata situated in the Western Arabian Sea.

INS Kolkata Delta63: Arrow leader (flying #Rafale),welcome to Indian Ocean
Rafale leader: Many thanks. Most reassuring to have an Indian warship guarding seas
INS Kolkata: May you touch the sky with glory. Happy landings
Rafale leader: Wish you fair winds. Happy hunting. Over&out https://t.co/WlEyiZTtg5

— ANI (@ANI) July 29, 2020

In the audio shared by news agency ANI, the warship can be heard welcoming the fighter jets as they enter the Indian Ocean. The Aero leader of the Rafale contingent then thanked the warship and said, "Most reassuring to have an Indian warship guarding the sea". The audio goes on as follows: ''INS Kolkata: May you touch the sky with glory, happy'' Aero Leader Rafale: ''Wish you fair winds, happy hunting over and out.''

This contact was established between the two elite units of the Indian Armed Forces, soon after the Rafales took off from UAE for their destination in Ambala.

The five Rafales were escorted by IAF's two SU30 MKIs as they entered the Indian air space, the Defence Ministry said.

The five Rafales escorted by 02 SU30 MKIs as they enter the Indian air space.@IAF_MCC pic.twitter.com/djpt16OqVd

— रक्षा मंत्री कार्यालय/ RMO India (@DefenceMinIndia) July 29, 2020

The first batch of five Rafale jets is scheduled to land at the Ambala airbase here on Wednesday afternoon with police tightening the security around the air force station.

The squadron of Rafale jets will be stationed at the Ambala airbase in Haryana. The jets took off from the Merignac airbase in French port city of Bordeaux on Monday and will arrive here after covering a distance of 7,000 km with air-to-air refueling and a single stop in the United Arab Emirates.

The fleet of five jets comprises three single-seater and two twin-seater aircraft. Authorities have imposed prohibitory orders near the Ambala Air Force Station, banning shooting of videos and photography.

The Ambala district administration has also prohibited people from flying private drones within the three-km radius of the airbase, officials said earlier. Section 144, which prohibits assembly of four or more people, has been imposed in the villages adjoining the airbase, including Dhulkot, Baldev Nagar, Garnala and Panjkhora.

Ambala Deputy Commissioner Ashok Kumar Sharma said shooting of videos or taking photographs of the boundary wall of the air base and its adjoining areas will remain strictly prohibited during the imposition of the prohibitory orders.

Meanwhile, the Haryana Police has set up several check barricades and police officers were seen patrolling residential localities near the air base, making announcements over loudspeakers warning people not to stand on the rooftop of their houses to click pictures or shoot videos.

Nearly four years ago, India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to purchase 36 Rafale jets under a Rs 59,000-crore deal to boost the IAF's combat capabilities. The five Rafales are scheduled to be inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday, though a formal induction ceremony would be held later.

The jets will be inducted into the IAF as part of its No 17 Squadron, also known as the 'Golden Arrows'. The aircraft is capable of carrying a range of potent weapons. European missile maker MBDA's Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile and Scalp cruise missile will be the mainstay of the weapons package of the Rafale jets.

Of the 36 jets, 30 will be fighter jets and six will be trainers. The trainer jets will be twin-seater and they will have almost all the features of the fighter jets.