New Delhi - India's air force will soon launch an international tender for the supply of 126 fighter jets to replace its ageing fleet of MiG-21s, air force chief S.P. Tyagi said Saturday.

India will also buy 18 Russian-made Sukhoi-30 MKI jets off-the-shelf rather than upgrading a previous batch of Su-30s to MKI specifications, the Press Trust of India reported, quoting Tyagi.

Estimated to be worth nine billion dollars, the deal for the 126 fighter jets already has the world's arms giants scrambling.

Among those in the running are US giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin, with their F-18 and F-16 aircraft respectively, alongside Russia's MiG-29 and the Gripen, made by Sweden's Saab.

The European defence and aircraft group EADS has already announced that it will bid for the contract, proposing its Eurofighter, as has French arms company Dassault Aviation with its fourth-generation Rafale fighter. - AFP

With acknowledgements to AFP and Business Report.