NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force has moved to localise sustainment of the Rafale fleet’s MICA air-to-air missiles by inking an agreement with European defence major MBDA to establish a domestic Maintenance, Repair and Mid-Life Overhaul (MRO) facility, ahead of India’s proposed acquisition of 114 additional multirole fighter aircraft.
According to a statement issued by MBDA on Wednesday, “the MRO facility will be set up, operated and maintained by the Indian Air Force, with MBDA supplying the industrial machinery and tools required, data packages, as well as training and technical support.”
The MICA is a short-to-medium range air-to-air missile used on the Rafale fighter aircraft for both beyond-visual-range and close-combat engagements, with a strike range of around 60-80 km depending on the launch profile. The missile comes in both active radar-guided and infrared-guided variants, allowing pilots to engage multiple aerial threats in different combat environments.
The company said the facility would support inspection, maintenance, repair and overhaul requirements for MICA missiles throughout their operational lifecycle, thereby improving fleet availability and operational readiness of the Rafale fighter aircraft.
MBDA also said the project was aligned with the government’s 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and Make in India initiatives, with the company providing industrial machinery, tooling, technical documentation, training and support to the IAF for operating the facility.
Apart from MICA, MBDA also supplies the Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) for the Rafale and is powered by a ramjet propulsion system. The missile has a strike range well beyond 150 km and is considered among the world’s most advanced BVR missiles due to its large “no-escape zone”, high end-game energy and network-enabled mid-course guidance capability.