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Chandigarh: The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) recent tender issued to France’s Dassault Aviation and Safran Aircraft Engines for a five-month-long “bridge support” contract to provide spares, repairs, maintenance, technical assistance and logistics support for its fleet of 36 twin-engine Rafale fighters, marks an important transition in the combat aircraft’s long-term sustainment architecture.

At first glance, the five-month duration of the Request for Proposal (RfP), issued earlier this month, appears unusual, particularly since such sustenance contracts for sophisticated fighter fleets are typically structured over several years to ensure continuity.

But industry officials said the seemingly arbitrary timeframe is closely linked to the transition towards a new sustainment ecosystem, largely centred on a dedicated Safran Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility for the Rafale’s M88 engine, currently being established in Hyderabad.

Scheduled for completion sometime around February 2027 – some five months after the expiry on September 18, 2026, of the 10-year support package agreed under the original 2016 Rafale acquisition contract – this facility will be the first overhaul centre for the M88 turbofan engine outside France, and is expected to be a key pillar of the fighter’s future support infrastructure in India.

Industry sources said the proposed “bridge contract” is intended to sustain the Rafale fleet through this interim period, while the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and French manufacturers Dassault Aviation and Safran Aircraft Engines – maker of the fighter’s M88 power plant- finalise a far more ambitious long-term Performance-Based Logistics (PBL) arrangement.

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Widely regarded as one of the most advanced methods of supporting modern combat aircraft, the PBL structure is expected to fundamentally transform how the Rafale fleet is maintained and supported throughout its service life with the IAF for several decades.

Under the proposed bridging arrangement, the IAF’s two Rafale squadrons at Ambala and Hashimara would continue to be supported, for now, at an annual utilisation rate of around 150 flying hours per aircraft, reflecting planned employment for training, exercises, operational tasking, and routine mission requirements.

Across the 36-aircraft fleet, this........

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