London's MMRCA Fall-Out

To no one's surprise, the decision by India to name the Dassault Aviation Rafale as the lowest-cost bidder in its MMRCA fighter competition over the Eurofighter Typhoon is not going down well in London.

Although Germany led the Indian Eurofighter campaign, the disappointment among British political, military and industrial players is palpable. Speaking in the House of Commons today, David Davis, a conservative MP, expressed his dismay at the outcome, particularly “given the fact that we give many many times more aid to India than France ever did.”

Prime Minister David Cameron, who lobbied for Eurofighter along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, concedes that “the decision is obviously disappointing.”

However, he's holding out hope. “They have not yet awarded the contract,” he says, adding that "I will do everything I can, as I have already, to encourage the Indians to look at Typhoon because I think it is such a good aircraft."

He tries to assure Davis that job losses in the U.K. are not expected as a result.

As to the competitive landscape, Cameron says Typhoon is “a superb aircraft with far better capabilities than Rafale" (or "Rafael," as Cameron calls it).

Tags: ar99, Eurofighter, Dassault, India, tacair