The Rafale fighter jets are "highly capable" and will be a game changer for the Air Force, Chief of the Eastern Air Command Air Marshal R Nambiar has said. All Air Force units in the region, except for some in West Bengal, will get the modern platforms, including the Rafale, the Chinook and the Apache attack helicopters, Air Marshal Nambiar said.

"The Rafale is an excellent aircraft. I had the opportunity to fly it in France. Let me assure you that this is highly capable and a game changer. Its presence in this area would give us a lot of deterrence," he said. "It provides us with a huge modicum of capability, which never existed in this part of the world," he said. On being asked if the capability enhancement of the command is to deter any country, he said the capability enhancement was for India.