The upgradation of Mirage 2000 would usher in state-of-the-art technologies with modern radar, weapons and electronic warfare capabilities. But the way the contract is structured, it would take seven to eight years from now for its completion, which means it could be the end of 2018 by the time the 51st aircraft is configured into its new avatar.

Coinciding literally with the ‘change of guard’ for the top post of the Indian Air Force (IAF), the much awaited contract to upgrade its fleet of Mirage 2000 jet fighters was finally signed on July 29, 2011. After a tortuous period of financial duelling lasting more than two years, issues related to price negotiations between the two sides appear to have been resolved for the Indian Government to take the final step of inking the contract. The deal had been stuck for the past two years primarily due to differences over the price being offered by French original equipment manufacturer (OEM) Dassault and Thales. After going through the detailed list provided by the Indian side for the fighter’s upgradation, the French companies had initially quoted an exorbitant price close to $3 billion ( Rs. 13,500 crore). This amounted to about $60 million ( Rs. 270 crore) per aircraft, which was coming close to the price of a brand-new fighter jet of the Mirage 2000 calibre. With the final price arrived at through not only hard negotiations but also carefully timed nudges at the highest political quarters; at Rs. 10,000 crore ($2.22 billion) as the total cost of the project, per unit cost to upgrade 51 aircraft is still coming close to a hefty $40 million ( Rs. 180 crore). However, the Indian Government has decided to ink the deal in view of the reasonable reduction in price and agreeing with the IAF’s plea that upgradation is crucial to help cope up at least to some extent with its neverending problem of ageing fleets and diminishing numbers in combat force levels.

First inducted in 1985, the IAF had acquired a total of 51 aircraft (41 single-seat fighters and 10 twin-seat trainers) by 1988. At the time of the 1999 Kargil conflict, Mirage 2000, also known as the Vajra (Thunderbolt) was the frontline fighter of the IAF. The IAF went on to acquire an additional 10 aircraft in 2004 with somewhat improved avionics such as the RDM-7 radar, but the bulk of its Mirage fleet was indeed in need of a midlife upgrade. French manufacturer Dassault and its associated partners in the Mirage 2000 programme have continued to keep the aircraft on par with the latest models of the US F-16 fighters. By the late 1980s, Thomson-CSF had already begun work on a privately funded update of the Mirage 2000C to be renamed Mirage 2000-5, which first flew on October 24, 1990. The French Air Force had by 1993 decided to upgrade a major portion of its Mirage 2000 fleet to the 2000-5 specification as a stopgap arrangement before the induction of the Rafale, which at the time was still under development. The upgraded aircraft were re-designated Mirage 2000-5, and became operational in 2000. The improvements included the Thales thermal camera TV/CT CLDP laser designator pod as well as the Thales multimode radar doppler multi-target (RDY), which allows detection of up to 24 targets and the ability to simultaneously track eight threats while guiding four MICA missiles to different targets. Updates to defensive systems included the integrated countermeasures (ICMS) 2 countermeasures suite and the Samir Détecteur De Missile (DDM) missile warning system. ICMS 2 incorporated a receiver and associated signal processing system in the nose for detecting hostile missile command data links, which could be interfaced to a new programmable mission-planning and postmission analysis ground system. Avionics were also updated, using a new night vision-compatible glass cockpit layout borrowed from the Rafale, a dual-linked wide-angle head-up display, and hands on throttle-and-stick (HOTAS) controls. The Mirage 2000-5 was enabled to carry the oversized drop tanks developed for the Mirage 2000N, greatly extending its range. And while the Rafale has entered operational service, the French Air Force has taken a conscious decision to move one more step ahead to further upgrade its fleet of Mirages, at least for the aircraft with sufficient residual operational life to Mirage 2000-5 Mark 2 standards.

It may be mentioned that in response to the initial request for information (RFI) issued in 2001 for the IAF’s ambitious 126-aircraft MMRCA programme, the French manufacturer Dassault had offered Mirage 2000-5 to compete with the Russian Mikoyan MiG-35, the US Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon and the Swedish SAAB JAS39 Gripen aircraft. The undue delays in progressing the programme to the next stage from the Indian side and the fact that two heavy-weight contenders Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet from the US and EADS Eurofighter Typhoon, had joined the competition, prompted Dassault to replace the Mirage 2000-5 with its own state-of-the-art twin-engine Rafale jet fighter by citing its inability to keep the Mirage 2000 assembly line open for an indefinite length of time. Simultaneously however, the French OEMs also offered to upgrade the IAF’s Mirage 2000 fleet to ‘–5 standards’.

Interestingly, as the saga of India’s most ambitious MMRCA defence deal unfolded, Dassault and its Rafale, which at one time came very close to being knocked out of the race on technical/procedural grounds, not only survived the danger of elimination but creditably came to be selected as one of the only two shortlisted aircraft in the competition. That it stands tall along with the other contender—the Eurofighter Typhoon—and has at least a 50 per cent chance of winning the competition, its offer along with its other compatriot companies to upgrade the IAF Mirage 2000 fleet to Mirage-5 Mk 2 standards takes on altogether a different hue.

The Mk2 version of the Mirage 2000-5 incorporates further enhancements to offensive systems which include a data link for the targeting of MICA ER missiles, the addition of the Damocles FLIR targeting pod, and a newer, stealthier Thales RDY-2 all-weather synthetic aperture radar with moving target indicator capability, which also grants the aircraft improved air-to-ground capability. The avionics have been further updated with higher resolution colour displays, an optional top-sight helmet-mounted display and the addition of the modular data processing unit (MDPU) designed for the Rafale. A new Thales Totem 3000 inertial navigation system with ring laser gyroscope and global positioning system (GPS) capability has been added, providing much greater accuracy, higher reliability, and shorter alignment time than the older ULISS 52 navigation system which it replaces. The other upgradation includes the addition of an on-board oxygen generation system (OBOGS) for the pilot and an ICMS 3 digital countermeasures suite. Further planned upgrades include Thales AIDA visual identification pod, a GPS receiver, MIDS data link, new long-range sensors, and the top sight helmet-mounted display. Other technologes developed for the Rafale will also be integrated into the Mirage 2000, including infrared and optical sensors for identification friend and foe (IFF) and targeting.