The French-origin Rafale-M carrier fighter has commenced deck trials aboard INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier, marking a critical milestone in the naval aviation platform’s operational readiness ahead of formal induction into the Indian Navy.
The Rafale-M is a maritime variant of the Rafale combat aircraft, optimised for carrier operations with reinforced landing gear, an arrester hook, and folding wings to accommodate deck constraints. The aircraft carries a 4.7-tonne payload across 14 hardpoints and operates at a combat radius of over 1,850 kilometres with internal fuel, making it a significant air defence and strike asset for India’s carrier battle group.
INS Vikrant, commissioned in September 2022, is a 40,000-tonne conventionally powered carrier built by Cochin Shipyard Limited under the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier programme. The ship is designed to operate a mixed air wing comprising MiG-29K fighters, Rafale-M aircraft, and indigenous helicopters including the HAL Dhruv and MH-60R variants.
Deck trials represent the most demanding phase of carrier aviation certification. Pilots execute arrested landings, catapult-assisted takeoffs, and hover transitions to validate aircraft integration with ship systems, including the arrester wire system and flight deck operations. These trials occur in a structured progression from low-speed approaches to full-speed arrested landings, allowing pilots and air traffic controllers to build confidence in the aircraft-ship combination.
India’s defence ministry ordered 36 Rafale-M aircraft in 2020 under a contract valued at approximately 1.86 billion euros with Dassault Aviation. The order includes both single-seat and two-seat variants. The maritime variant incorporates a folding refuelling probe, strengthened undercarriage to absorb carrier landing loads, and integration with naval tactical data links that connect the aircraft to the carrier’s combat management system.
The Rafale-M complements the existing MiG-29K fleet aboard INS Vikrant. While the MiG-29K provides air defence cover, the Rafale-M offers superior strike range and payload capacity for anti-ship and land-attack missions. This dual-platform strategy mirrors operational doctrine aboard NATO carriers and enhances the carrier’s operational flexibility across the Indian Ocean Region.
Successful completion of deck trials will clear the Rafale-M for carrier operations and enable formal deployment within the naval air wing. The trials also validate the carrier’s flight deck infrastructure, arrester systems, and air traffic management protocols ahead of sustained combat operations.