Malaysia - Multirole Combat Aircraft (MRCA)
In October 2010 the Malaysian government decided to retire the country's MiG-29s because of their high operating costs. The air force planned to phase out its remaining eight operational MiG-29s by 2015. As of late 2011 the Dassault Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon were in the running against the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Saab Gripen for Malaysia's multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA) requirement to replace the Royal Malaysian Air Force's MiG-29 aircraft, which entered service in the early 1990s.
Dassault was in talks aimed at supplying 16 of the multi-role combat jets to Malaysia. RAFALE for MALAYSIA is envisioned as a comprehensive Program addressing the needs and requirements of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) to perform its primary role in defending the sovereignty of Malaysia as well as involving the Malaysian Industry into a strong and long lasting cooperation with companies in French RAFALE Team.
The Omnirole RAFALE proposed to Malaysia was the latest variant in service with the French Air Force which is combat-proven and its induction into RMAF will be supported by a technical assistance in Malaysia as RAFALE will be supported for 40 years after the last delivery. This arrangement will allow a smooth and efficient ramp up of RMAF capability with the objective to achieve maximum autonomy in operating the RAFALE.
Malaysian Industries would play a key role in the RAFALE for MALAYSIA Program and the envisioned concept is to federate several key Industry players with complementary capabilities in the domains of Aviation and Defence to become the Malaysian RAFALE Team. These partnerships will go beyond the RAFALE for MALAYSIA Program by offering other High technology co-operation as well as Education in line with the Economic Transformation Program.
With the November 2011 contract award to Boeing to upgrade the Royal Malaysian Air Force's eight F/A-18D Hornet fighter aircraft, it would seem that the Super Hornet would have an edge in this competition for at least 18 aircraft. The F-35 isn't involved in Malaysia's current fighter competition. A fifth aircraft in contention is Irkut’s Su-30MKM, with the RMAF already having 18 of the Russian jets in service.
Flight Global reported on 07 December 2011 that "Malaysia has yet to issue a formal request for proposals for MRCA. Royal Malaysian Air Force chief Gen Rodzali Daud told Flightglobal a decision will be made before the finalisation of the country's 11th Malaysia plan. This meant a winner could be announced in 2013 - possibly at the next Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace exhibition - or in 2014."
Typhoon aircraft were flown in March 2013 from the UK ahead of the LIMA 2013 air show. BAE is one of the four European partner industries that developed Typhoon and led a bid to offer the jet to the Royal Malaysian Air Force once its competition for MiG 29 replacement got underway.
By 2015 Malaysia, which wanted to replace its fleet of Russian MiG-29 fighters, was said to be looking at the Rafale, Boeing's F/A-18, Swedish firm Saab's Gripen and the Eurofighter Typhoon. French manufacturer Dassault Aviation, which builds the Rafale, was said to be in talks with Malaysia to supply 16 of the multi-role combat jets.
While the purchase was earlier expected by Malaysia to be completed in 2015 year, the country's fiscal troubles due to plunging oil and commodities prices meant delays in placing the order.
In March 2015 a local company, Aerospace Technology Systems Corp Sdn Bhd (ATSC), has offered to upgrade the 10 MiG-29N aircraft of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) to Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA). ATSC chief executive officer Lt Col (Rtd) Fadzar Suhada said today the enhancement proposed by the company would make the aircraft not only on par with other MRCA fighter jets in the market but also extend the lifespan by a minimum of 25 years. ATSC would be partnering Russia's RAC MiG company should its proposal receive the go-ahead from the government. The enhanced model he said, would be known as the MiG-29NM (modernisation).
The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) fleet of MiG-29N fighter aircraft will remain an important asset to the country's air defense. RMAF chief General Datuk Seri Roslan Saad said 01 June 2015 there has been no decision to replace the MIG-29N which had been in service since 1990 and the aircraft will still remain in service.
He said RMAF will scrutinise the capabilities of the existing MIG-29N fleet to ensure it remains competitive and relevant in safeguarding the country's air space. "Initially, there were plans to phase out the aircraft and replace them with another multi-role combat aircraft.... However, we have decided to upgrade the aircraft to ensure it has similar capabilities with fighter jets owned by other countries," he told reporters after opening RMAF's 57th anniversary.
Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein was reported in media as saying that the race for new fighter jets had narrowed down to the Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon, built by BAE Systems. Malaysia was looking to buy up to 18 jets in a deal potentially worth more than $2 billion. By March 2017 the Rafale was emerging as the frontrunner to replace the aging fleet of combat aircraft. French President Francois Hollande made a pitch for the Rafale, made by Dassault Aviation SA, when he and his team visited Malaysia. The ministry's top leadership have been promoting the Rafale. The plan then was to replace the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF) squadron of Russian MiG-29 combat planes, nearly half of which were grounded.
By late 2017 the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) was no longer seeking a multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA) and is evaluating light combat aircraft (LCA) instead. Financial troubles forced Malaysia to drop its plans to buy highly capable multirole combat aircraft (MRCA) and settle for cheaper, less capable fighter jets to replace its current fleet of Russian MiG 29s that were mostly grounded. Based on the new RMAF CAP55 roadmap released in 2018, the air force was seeking a single-type multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA). As part of CAP55, the RMAF plans to streamline the types of combat aircraft from five to two (the MRCA and FLIT-LCA) to reduce operating costs.
While the MRCA is also part of the service's modernisation plan, it was postponed following the prioritisation of the LCA/FLIT programme. As part of CAP55, the RMAF plans to streamline the types of combat aircraft from five to two (the MRCA and FLIT-LCA) to reduce operating costs. In December 2018, Malaysia issued a request for information for its Fighters Lead-In Trainer-Light Combat Aircraft (FLIT-LCA) program. On 20 March 2023, Malaysia awarded a contract worth $920 million to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) for the supply of 18 aircraft. The project will acquire the initial batch of 18 LCA as part of the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF's) Capability Development 2055 plan.
Under RMAF's CAP55 programme, the air force plans to retire its eight F/A-18D Hornet and 18 Sukhoi Su-30MKM Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) in 2035 and 2040 respectively. RMAF is expected to induct a new fleet of MRCA before the planned retirement of both its long-serving heavyweight fighter jets. "I believe, yes, the KF-21 will be more than likely to be able to replace them because the timing of the retirement of F/A-18D and Su-30MKM is exactly the same time when the KF-21 will be fielded,
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