India Deploys Russian-Origin Su-30MKI Fighters to France For Joint Exercises with Local Rafales

The Indian Air Force has deployed Su-30MKI ‘4+ generation’ fighters to participate in Exercise Garuda 25 at Mont-de-Marsan Air Base in France from 16 to 27 November, during which they have operated closely alongside French Air Force Rafale and Mirage 2000 fighters. Cockpit images released from Mont-de-Marsan Air Base drew significant attention to the exercises, and showed six Su-30s in tight mixed formations alongside Rafales, supported by a French Air Force A330 MRTT Phenix tanker. Although the Indian Air Force itself operates a small Rafale fleet ordered from France, prior plans to field over 100 of the fighters and manufacture them locally were terminated in the mid-2010s, with only 36 being ordered, of which between one and four were lost in combat with Pakistani forces in May 2025.

Western and allied militaries have highly prized the ability to exercise alongside Indian Su-30MKIs, which are closely related to the more advanced Su-30SM which is widely fielded by the Russian Aerospace Forces and Navy, as well as to the newer Su-35. In October the British Royal Navy deployed six F-35B fighters for simulated combat engagements with Indian Air Force Su-30MKIs and Jaguar attack jets, while four years prior the Japanese Air Self Defence Force saw its first simulated engagements against Russian-designed heavyweight fighters when Su-30MKIs landed in the country. Compared to the Rafale, the Su-30 benefits from the integration of a significantly more powerful radar that is over twice as large, from considerably greater engine power and much higher flight performance, and from a far superior range which significantly reduces its reliance on aerial refuelling or external fuel tanks.

India is by far the largest operator of the Su-30, with over 270 of the aircraft currently in service making it by far the most widely fielded aircraft in the country’s fleet. The Indian Defence Ministry was confirmed in July to be holding talks with Russia to further modernise the aircraft, which although world leading when first operationalised in 2002, are increasingly falling behind the cutting edge. A domestic AESA radar is currently under development to replace the fighter’s Russian N011M PESA radar in the 2030s, while the possibility of Russia upgrading the aircraft with AL-41F-1S engines from the Su-35 fighter, much as it has with its own Su-30s, remains significant. The Indian Defence Ministry is currently holding talks to procure the Su-57 fifth generation fighter and produce it under license, providing a direct successor to the Su-30MKI. The Su-57’s significantly superior fifth generation capabilities make it an attractive alternative to procuring more Su-30s or to further expanding the Indian Rafale fleet, particularly after the French fighter’s perceived serious underperformance in May.