New Delhi, Jul 29(UNI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday welcomed the first batch of Rafale aircraft that landed in Ambala with a tweet in Sanskrit that stressed the importance of national security.
In a post on Social media in Sanskrit, the PM said, 'There is no bigger virtue than securing the nation; there is no bigger fast than securing the nation; there is no bigger work than securing the nation.'
The PM also posted on his Twitter account a video of the Rafale jets making a landing at the Ambala air base.
Earlier today, a fleet of five Rafale multi-role combat jets, manufactured in France, touched down at the Ambala air base where they were welcomed by Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria.
The aircraft landed at the Ambala Air Force base after covering a distance of 7,000 km from the Merignac airbase in French port city of Bordeaux.
The Rafales were escorted by two Sukhoi 30 MKIs after they entered the Indian air space.
"The Birds have landed safely in Ambala," Defence Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted.
In a tweet, Mr Singh said, 'The touch down of Rafale combat aircrafts in India marks the beginning of a new era in our Military History. These multirole aircrafts will revolutionise the capabilities of the IAF".
The fleet, comprising three single seater and two twin seater aircraft, are being inducted into the IAF as part of its Ambala-based No 17 Squadron, also known as the 'Golden Arrows'.'
The government has said 10 Rafale jets were delivered to India and that five of them are staying back in France for training missions.
UNI AR SB 1732