With your varied experience in the air Force, how would you assess our capability and resources in the 75th year of our independence?
Capability – has grown immensely – from a tactical air force in its fledgling years, the IAF has now got assets that can contribute to creating strategic effects. This is with reference to, not only offensive platforms, but also transport aircraft and helicopter fleets that have rendered yeoman service by projecting India’s soft power through HADR tasks and evacuation missions.
Resources – Over the years, the government has helped in the accretion of modern and contemporary assets in the transport and helicopter fleets to maintain the potency of IAF’s punch. That more can and could have been done, is a moot point when corelated with the financial health of the exchequer.It is also evident from the experience at Siachen (where you have served twice) and elsewhere that lesser equipment has not really impacted the quality or the delivery of critical services by the Air Force. For years, some of the helicopters flown were years past their obsolescence. Clearly the training and motivation is outstanding. Could you identify what makes for that extra edge?
IAF aircrew have implicit trust in their technicians who keep their mounts ‘flying fit.’ The technical staff is rendering yeoman service while working in very harsh conditions in the Siachen Glacier and other border regions. So, while the Chetak/Cheetah fleet is old, it must be remembered that any machine that is available on the flight line is fit to fly. Now comes the flying adeptness of aircrew – which, honed through rigorous training and efficient supervision, is second to none. There is also an Espirit de corps, so vividly seen in the flying being done over the Glacier by 114 HU (Siachen Pioneers) and Mi-17 Units.
Bu hikaye Geopolitics dergisinin October 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Geopolitics dergisinin October 2021 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
India's space economy set to soar
India's burgeoning space economy could see a substantial increase in its global share by 2040. At present, India's space sector contributes a modest $8 billion to the overall cake. However, the government has set its sights on an ambitious target, aiming for a five-fold surge in India's share of the global space economy.
CRITICAL NEED TO BOOST CONVENTIONAL SUBMARINE FLEET
VENUGOPAL MENON explains why India cannot afford to view the critical deficiency in Submarine force levels lightly
BEEFING UP OUR SUBMARINE FLEET
In the last week of March, the Indian Navy displayed its submarine prowess. Eight of its submarines operated together in the Western Indian Ocean Region, a first in three decades, and one of its Scorpene submarines sailed to the Andaman Nicobar Islands, overlooking the Malacca Strait, a critical choke point for China. But how is the comparison with China? RITU SHARMA reports
ENHANCING CRUISE MISSILE CAPABILITY
India’s cruise missile capability has largely evolved as a credible conventional level deterrence since the turn of the new millennium. But much more needs to be done, writes AMARTYA SINHA
BOOSTING DEFENCE EXPORTS
Earlier, India was known to be an arms importer. But today, the country has come out of its comfort zone and found a place in the list of top-25 arms exporter nations argues AMARTYA SINHA
ENHANCING INDIA'S AIRBORNE SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIES
Project NETRA represents a proactive initiative by ISRO to safeguard India's interests in space by mitigating the risks posed by space debris and other hazards, says GIRISH LINGANNA
THE HIMALAYAN TRIANGLE: WHY INDIA KEEPS BHUTAN SAFE FROM CHINA
India, given its special relationship with Bhutan, has been very wary about the possibility of the establishment of diplomatic relations and the signing of a boundary agreement between Bhutan and China, writes SIMRAN SODHI
TROOST, DESAI AND SANCTIONS
The Western sanctions against companies and individuals doing business with Russia have produced a complex set of reactions with lobbyists and shell companies working overtime to beat the rap. A GEOPOLITICS Bureau report
THE KOREA-GATE
India attaches great importance to “three principles of inclusiveness, trust and reciprocity’” for creating the basis for working more closely with like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific such as the Republic of Korea (ROK), better known as South Korea for “a free, peaceful and prosperous region”. Prakash Nanda dissects the relationship and the way ahead
Pushpak RLV-TD successfully lands autonomously
ISRO achieved another significant milestone in reusable launch vehicle (RLV) technology with the successful landing of Pushpak (RLV-TD), the winged vehicle, autonomously on the runway.
