The radars for the 26 Rafale aircraft being built for India by Dassault Aviation will be sourced from SF Technologies, a Kerala-based company under the Nest Group. The firm has secured a contract from French defence major Thales to manufacture the advanced RBE2 AESA radars.
As reported, the RBE2 AESA radar can generate real-time, high-resolution 3D terrain images even in adverse weather, enabling long-range surveillance of enemy movements and precision targeting. The value and duration of the contract have not been disclosed.
SF Technologies Chairman and Managing Director N. Jahangir said the partnership reflects the company’s role in the Rafale programme and reinforces the “Make in India” initiative.
Amid this, a letter surfaced widely on the internet with the claim: ‘Jaishankar’s letter to France confirms one thing the Rafale controversy is far from over. New Delhi is struggling to contain the fallout of leaked communications.
It is mentioned in the letter, "It has come to our attention that certain communications concerning the Rafale naval aircraft timeline have recently emerged in the public domain. While we fully understand the complexities of such arrangements and the detailed processes involved, the unintended disclosure has created some unforeseen challenges for us, given the nature of our extensive collaboration".
Here you can find a archive version of the claim.
Fact check:
The claim that S. Jaishankar wrote a letter to France indicating the Rafale deal controversy is ongoing is false. No such letter exists, and the allegation is baseless.
When we searched using relevant keywords, we did not find any news article published by any credible media outlet. If such a letter had existed, it would have been reported by authentic and mainstream media.
When we searched for the letter, we did not find any information on the Ministry of External Affairs’ social media sites.
However, we found a post dated December 11, 2025, related to the viral claim. In the post, the Ministry of External Affairs mentioned, ‘The letter being referred to in this post is fake.’ The post also urged viewers to remain alert about disinformation.
We found that BOOM had previously debunked the viral claim and published a report on it, "A letter claiming to show External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar writing to French Ambassador Thierry Mathou about a leaked Rafale delivery schedule and the problems it caused, is digitally manipulated and fake."
Hence we found the claim is false. The viral claim suggesting that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar wrote a letter to France admitting that the Rafale deal controversy is far from over and that India is attempting to manage the fallout of leaked communications is completely false. There is no credible evidence or official record to support the existence of such a letter.