The first batch of five Rafale fighter jets from France landed in Ambala in Haryana on Wednesday. The five jets took off from the Merignac airbase in Bordeaux in South France on Monday.
The fighter jets entered Indian airspace at about 1.30 pm and were greeted by Indian Navy’s warship INS Kolkata, deployed in the Arabian Sea.
राष्ट्ररक्षासमं पुण्यं,
राष्ट्ररक्षासमं व्रतम्,
राष्ट्ररक्षासमं यज्ञो,
दृष्टो नैव च नैव च।।
नभः स्पृशं दीप्तम्…
स्वागतम्! #RafaleInIndia pic.twitter.com/lSrNoJYqZO— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 29, 2020
Prime Minister Narendra welcomed the landing of the fighter jets with a tweet in Sanskrit.
The Birds have entered the Indian airspace..Happy Landing in Ambala! @IAF_MCC pic.twitter.com/dh35pMDyYi
— रक्षा मंत्री कार्यालय/ RMO India (@DefenceMinIndia) July 29, 2020
”The birds have landed safely in Ambala,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted. ”The touch down of Rafale combat aircrafts in India marks the beginning of a new era in our Military History. These multirole aircrafts will revolutionise the capabilities of the Indian Air Force.” He also shared a video of the touchdown.
