On July 14, three Indian Air Force Rafale fighter planes will participate in the Bastille Day fly-past over Paris' Champs Elysees. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend this year’s Bastille Day Parade as the guest of honor.
July 14 is the national day of France. It is called Fête Nationale Française in French. It is the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789. And the French Revolution and Federation were formed.
A meticulously planned spectacle is the traditional military parade on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. Throughout the nation, dances, fireworks displays, and special illuminations are organized.
Along with their French counterparts the tri-service contingent will march in the parade.
Under an intergovernmental agreement, India purchased 36 Rafale aircraft from France. The Rafael jets are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 years after the Sukhoi jets. Rafale jets are capable of carrying a range of potent weapons.
In August last year, a French Air and Space Force contingent, including three Rafale jets, made a strategically crucial stopover at the IAF’s Sulur base in Tamil Nadu as part of a mega military operation it carried out in the Pacific Ocean.
The prime minister’s visit is expected to herald the next phase in the India-France strategic partnership by setting new and ambitious goals for our strategic, cultural, scientific, academic, and economic cooperation, including in a wide range of industries.
