Its F-35A vs Rafale in MRFA : Operating cost will be the deciding factor than Per Unit Cost

Source : Indian Defence Updates (IDU)

Two USAF F-35A Lightning IIs assigned to 4th Fighter Squadron and two Dassault Rafales assigned to 1/4 Gascogne Fighter Squadron, 113 Saint-Dizier-Robinson air base, France flies together over France.

Amid reports that the US firm Lockheed Martin may offer its F-35 5^th Generation Stealth Fighter jet in the 114 MRFA tender at $78 million dollars per unit.

Experts have said that apart from the per-unit cost of the aircraft, the cost per flying hour will also be a deciding factor in the tender.

The Cost per Flying Hour of F-35A is around 33,000 which Lockheed claims will come down to 25,000 per hour by end of 2022. The Cost per Flying Hour of the Rafale is 18,000 per hour which is currently 12,000 cheaper than the F-35A but it could be a problem for Rafale in 2025, if Lockheed can bring down the difference in Cost per Flying Hour to just 4,000.

Dassault Aviation has been winning orders for its Rafale fighter jets from several countries but its production rate will hardly reach 36 aircraft per year by 2025, which will only cater to a massive backlog of orders Made in India.

Rafale aircraft might see a marginal jump in its per-unit cost even if it is carried out by a local private sector company similar to the Su-30 fighter jets that were produced by Hindustan Aeronautics at a 30 percent higher cost.