Confronted with the prospect of having to fight an adversary each on both the western and eastern fronts, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has got the French missile manufacturer MBDA to recalibrate the software of the SCALP long-range, air-launched cruise missile to ensure the subsonic weapon can hit targets up to 4,000 metres above the sea level, Hindustan Times has learnt.

The missile with a range in excess of 300 kilometres and a 450-kilo warhead is part of the weapon suite on the IAF’s Rafale omnirole fighter planes manufactured by France’s Dassault Aviation SA.

In simple terms, it means the IAF’s Rafale jets can demolish targets located in the mountains and high plateaus at an altitude of 4,000 metres, double the SCALP’s previous calibration of 2,000 metres. MBDA has tweaked the software n consultation with the top brass of the IAF, people aware of the development said.

The development comes amid a military standoff between India and China in the eastern Ladakh theatre along the Line of Actual Control where troops of both countries have dug in for a harsh winter.

The next batch of three Rafale fighters are expected to arrive after the 2021 Republic Day, and plans have been made for the aircraft to be refuelled mid-air using the Airbus 330 multi-role transport tankers of the United Arab Emirates air force when they fly towards the Ambala airbase. As of now, seven Rafales are being used for training IAF pilots in France. The complete fleet of 36 aircraft is scheduled to reach India by the end of 2021. One squadron of this potent fighter will be based at Ambala.

Source: HT