Rafale Marine aircraft completes first landing and take‑off from INS Vikrant

The Indian Navy’s <b>Rafale Marine</b> jet successfully performed its <b>first landing and take‑off</b> on the aircraft carrier <b>INS Vikrant</b> on Thursday, marking a milestone in indigenous carrier operations. While the navy celebrates, the defence procurement saga continues to crawl; the G2G deal promises twelve Rafales a year, yet the timeline for full‑scale production remains vague, exposing the chronic lag in translating agreements into operational fleets. The achievement boosts morale but underscores the need for faster indigenisation to keep the fleet combat‑ready.