France aiming for two more Rafale deals by early 2016: Source

PARIS: France is confident of winning two more foreign orders for its Rafale fighter jet by the beginning of next year as it seeks to extend a spate of recent export successes, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

After failing for years to win an order for its national warplane, France has sold 24 Rafales each to Egypt and Qatar in recent months and is in talks to sell another 36 to India.

"There should be two other export contracts for the Rafale by the beginning of next year," not including India, the source said.

"The most advanced discussions are with Malaysia and the UAE," the source added.

In a further development, the source said that France is negotiating with India for options to supply further aircraft on top of 36 Rafales the country has provisionally agreed to buy.