 |
|
Air Force displays firepower Pokhran, March 14 With over 60 aircraft participating in the exercise, the IAF brought out virutally its entire range of frontline combat aircraft and displayed a wide spectrum of its offensive capability. In the backdrop of ongoing peace moves between India and Pakistan, this is the second major show of force conducted by the armed forces within a span of two weeks. Earlier the Army had showcased its new array of weaponary and the conduct of joint operations during Exercise Divya Astra in Suratgarh earlier this month. Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, Air Chief Marshal S. Krishnaswamy, Navy Chief Admiral Madhvendra Singh and a host of senior Air Force and Army officers were present at the exercise. Defence and Air Attaches from about 30 countries were also flown in by the IAF to witness its firepower. The impressive exercise highlighted not only general capabilities and performance attributes of fighter aircraft abut also precision attack, special operations and photo-recce capabilities. Starting off with a low-level supersonic run by a pair of MiG-29 in close formation and a flypast by a mixed formation, a lone Su-30 executed a series of spectacular low-level manoeuvres to highlight its awesome versalality and
performance. During demonstrations of air defence operations, the Su-30 on a combat air patrol displayed their skill in shooting down enemy aircraft with short range heat seeking missiles. These missiles were launched against flares which simulated exhausts of aircraft. Counter air operations were demonstrated by various types of aircraft launching attacks at airfield installations. Also on display were attacks against railway yards, radar stations, tank concentrations, fuel and ammunition dumps. Special heli-borne operations in support of the Army were displayed by a pair of MI-35 gunships neutralising enemy defence with missiles. This was followed by MI-17 dropping commandoes and another two MI-17s transporting two jeeps slung under their fuselage. The recently acquired capability of air-to-air refuelling was displayed with two Mirage-2000s hooked up to an IL-78 tanker. The IAF Surya Kiran aerobatic team, led by Wg Cdr S Prabhakaran, also performed on the occasion. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Need to go in for precision-guided arms, says Pokhran, March 14 Speaking with mediapersons at “Vayu Shakti-04”, held after a gap of five years, he said precision-guided munitions were much more cost effective. “The question is how much we can afford,” he added. “We must have the capability to absorb new technology, but there are certain limitations because we have a mix of old and new equipment,” the Air Chief Marshal said. We needed to upgrade certain equipment, he added. The MiG-21 Bison upgrade, he said, had proved to be a success, which has encouraged the IAF to think about upgrading other aircraft in its fleet. A lot of Indian components like mission computer and avionics were being used in the ongoing Jaguar and MiG 27 upgrades, he said. Besides the Su-30, Jaguars and Mirage 2000s had also been modified for aerial refuelling, and modifications for other aircraft in the IAF fleet would be considered. Stating that the exercise was not intended to send a message to anyone, he termed it as a training stint to expose young pilots as well as officers attending various courses to the intricacies of air warfare and joint operations. On the procurement of Hawk jet trainers, he said the deal would be signed within a month. There were
reports that some accounting errors had cropped up in the proposal, he added. The Air Chief Marshal said Phalcon airborne early warning systems would take 3-5 years to enter service, as a lot of technical work needed to be done. He said the Light Combat Aircraft would enter squadron service by 2007-08 and he also expressed happiness over the progress of the indigenous Kaveri engine for the aircraft. |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | National Capital | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
