MBDA bags Euro 950 million missile deal for Indian Mirage 2000 upgrade

India will procure 500 air-to-air missiles from French firm MBDA for IAF's Mirage 2000 aircraft fleet which are being upgraded by Dassault-Thales. The missiles are worth Euro 950 million, nearly three fourths as much as what the aircraft upgrade will cost. A Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh cleared the procurement of 490 MICA missiles, agency reports said quoting Indian Defence Ministry sources in New Delhi. The missiles would be deployed on the 51 Mirage 2000 aircraft, which are already undergoing upgrades at French facilities under a Euro 1.47 billion deal signed earlier this year. Under the deal, MBDA will have to do offsets worth 30 per cent of the deal meaning that they will have to invest 315 million Euros back in the Indian defence sector. MBDA already has a tie up with Indian government owned missile manufacturer, Bharat Dynamics Limited as the offsets will most likely be executed through this venture.