President Droupadi Murmu to take sortie in Rafale fighter jet from Ambala airbase on Wednesday

PRESIDENT Droupadi Murmu will be taking a sortie in a Rafale fighter jet from the Ambala Air Force base in Haryana on Wednesday, 29 October, the Rashtrapati Bhavan announced on Tuesday.

India had used these jets to launch attacks on terrorist hideouts in Pakistan as part of Operation Sindoor.

Earlier, former presidents APJ Abdul Kalam and Pratibha Patil had both taken sorties in fighter jets. Kalam and Patil undertook sorties in the Shukhoi-30 MKI.

Murmu herself had taken a sortie in a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet back on 8 April, 2023, making her the third president of India to do so.

The Rashtrapati Bhavan issued a statement on Tuesday, saying, "The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, will visit Ambala, Haryana tomorrow where she will take a sortie in Rafale."

On Tuesday, the President inaugurated the Eighth Session of the International Solar Alliance Assembly's first plenary in the national capital, the President's secretariat said.

At the event, the President spoke of the harmful effects of climate change and urged for concrete steps to be taken to mitigate the same.

"Access to affordable and clean energy empowers communities, drives local economy, and opens up opportunities that extend well beyond the provision of electricity," ANI quoted the President as saying at the event. Take a look at the President's speech at the event here:

The Rafale jets, which are manufactured by French aviation company Dassault Aviation, were first inducted into the Indian Air Force in September 2020.

The Rafale production began in France after the country fell out with the UK, Spain, Germany, and Italy while trying to jointly produce a future-ready fighter plane in the late 1970s.

Following the dispute, France pursued its own project involving most of its major defence companies. The Rafale was formally introduced in 2001 for the French Air Force and the French Navy.

The Rafale jets can reach a maximum speed of 1,912 kmph at high altitudes and 1,390 kmph at lower altitudes.

There are several variants of the Rafale jets, with the Indian Air Force using the two-seater Rafale DH variant and the single-seater Rafale MH variant. The Indian Navy uses the single-seater Rafale MH variant.

Besides India and France, other countries that use the Rafale jets include Croatia, Egypt, Greece, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Indonesia and Serbia have also placed orders for Rafale jets. While Indonesia will get their delivery in 2026, Serbia will receive 12 Rafale jets by 2029.