The Indian Air Force (IAF) (

ISO The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ; ; ) is an independent, non-governmental, international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Me ...

: ) is the air arm of the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the armed forces, military forces of the India, Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Ar ...

. Its primary mission is to secure Indian

airspace Airspace is the portion of the atmosphere controlled by a country above its territory, including its territorial waters or, more generally, any specific three-dimensional portion of the atmosphere. It is not the same as outer space which is t ...

and to conduct

aerial warfare Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking tactical bombing, enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or Strategic bombing, strategic targets; fi ...

during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 October 1932 as an auxiliary air force of the

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

which honoured India's aviation service during World War. Since 1950, the IAF has been involved in four wars with neighbouring Pakistan. Other major operations undertaken by the IAF include Operation Vijay,

Operation Meghdoot Operation Meghdoot was the codename for the Indian Armed Forces operation to take full control of the Siachen Glacier in Ladakh. Executed on the morning of 13 April 1984, it marks the highest battlefield in the world. This operation preempted Pa ...

Operation Cactus Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

and Operation Poomalai. The IAF's mission expands beyond engagement with hostile forces, with the IAF participating in United Nations peacekeeping missions. The

President of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

holds the rank of Supreme Commander of the IAF. , 135,000 personnel are in service with the Indian Air Force. The Chief of the Air Staff, an

air chief marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

, is a four-star officer and is responsible for the bulk of operational command of the Air Force. There is never more than one serving ACM at any given time in the IAF. The rank of

Marshal of the Air Force Marshal of the air force or marshal of the air is a five-star rank (or NATO equivalent OF-10) and an English-language term for the most senior rank in some air forces. It is usually the direct equivalent of a general of the air force in other a ...

has been conferred by the President of India on one occasion in history, to

Arjan Singh Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, (15 April 1919 – 16 September 2017) was a senior air officer of the Indian Air Force. He served as the 3rd Chief of the Air Staff (India), Chief of the Air Staff from 1964 to 1969, leading the Air ...

. On 26 January 2002, Singh became the first and so far, only

five-star rank A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is th ...

officer of the IAF.

Mission

The IAF's mission is defined by the Armed Forces Act of 1947, the

Constitution of India The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India, legal document of India, and the longest written national constitution in the world. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures ...

, and the Air Force Act of 1950. It decrees that in the aerial

battlespace Battlespace or battle-space is a term used to signify a military strategy which integrates multiple armed forces for the military theater (warfare), theatre of operations, including aerial warfare, air, information warfare, information, ground w ...

Defence of India and every part there of including preparation for defence and all such acts as may be conducive in times of war to its prosecution and after its termination to effective demobilisation.

* The Primary objective of IAF is to defend the nation and its airspace against Air threats in coordination with Army and Navy. * The secondary purpose is to assist civil power during natural calamities and internal disturbances. * The IAF provides close air support to the Indian Army troops in the battlefield and also provides strategic and tactical airlift capabilities. * IAF also provides strategic air lift or secondary Airlift for the Indian Army. * The IAF also operates the Integrated Space Cell together with the other two branches of the Indian Armed Forces, the Department of Space and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). * Rescue of civilians during natural disasters * Evacuation of Indian nationals from foreign countries in case of instability or other problems In practice, this is taken as a directive meaning the IAF bears the responsibility of safeguarding Indian airspace and thus furthering national interests in conjunction with the other branches of the armed forces. The IAF provides close air support to the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

troops on the battlefield as well as strategic and tactical airlift capabilities. The

Integrated Space Cell The Integrated Space Cell was the nodal agency within the Government of India with oversight of the security of its space based military and civilian hardware systems. It was to be jointly operated by all the three services of the Indian Armed Fo ...

is operated by the

, the civilian

Department of Space The Department of Space (DoS) is an Indian government department responsible for administration of the Indian space programme. It manages several agencies and institutes related to space exploration and space technologies. The Indian space pr ...

, and the

Indian Space Research Organisation The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO ) is India's national List of government space agencies, space agency, headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka. It serves as the principal research and development arm of the Department of Space (DoS), ...

. By uniting the civilian run space exploration organisations and the military faculty under a single Integrated Space Cell the military is able to efficiently benefit from innovation in the civilian sector of space exploration, and the civilian departments benefit as well. The Indian Air Force, with highly trained crews, pilots, and access to modern military assets provides India with the capacity to provide rapid response evacuation, search-and-rescue (SAR) operations, and delivery of relief supplies to affected areas via cargo aircraft. The IAF provided extensive assistance to relief operations during natural calamities such as the Gujarat cyclone in 1998, the tsunami in 2004, and North India floods in 2013. The IAF has also undertaken relief missions such as Operation Rainbow in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

History

Formation and early pilots

The Indian Air Force was established on 8 October 1932 in

as an auxiliary air force of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

. The enactment of the Indian Air Force Act 1932 stipulated out their auxiliary status and enforced the adoption of the Royal Air Force uniforms, badges, brevets and insignia. On 1 April 1933, the IAF commissioned its first squadron, No.1 Squadron, with four Westland Wapiti biplanes and five Indian pilots. The Indian pilots were led by British RAF Commanding officer Flight Lieutenant (later Air Vice Marshal)

Cecil Bouchier Air Vice Marshal Sir Cecil Arthur Bouchier (14 October 1895 – 15 June 1979) served with the British Army, Royal Flying Corps, Indian Air Force and Royal Air Force from 1915 to 1953. He was Air Officer Commanding British Commonwealth Air Forc ...

. "A" flight of No 1. Squadron first saw action in April 1936, in Miranshah, in North Waziristan, flying reconnaissance missions and providing ground support against tribal insurgents in the North-West Frontier. No 1. Squadron was expanded in April 1939 to from a "B" flight, also equipped with Westland Wapiti biplanes, and "C" flight, raised in June 1938 brought the squadron to full strength.

World War II (1939–1945)

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the IAF played an instrumental role in halting the advance of the

Japanese army The , , also referred to as the Japanese Army, is the land warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Created on July 1, 1954, it is the largest of the three service branches. New military guidelines, announced in December 2010, direct t ...

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

, where the first IAF air strike was executed. The target for this first mission was the Japanese military base in

Arakan Arakan ( or ; , ), formerly anglicised as Aracan, is the historical geographical name for the northeastern coastal region of the Bay of Bengal, covering present-day Bangladesh and Myanmar. The region was called "Arakan" for centuries. It is ...

, after which IAF strike missions continued against the Japanese airbases at

Mae Hong Son Mae Hong Son (; , ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in north-west Thailand, capital of Mae Hong Son Province. It is in the Shan Hills, near the border with Burma along the banks of the River Pai. As of 2018, the town had 7,066 inhabitants. The ...

Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...

and

Chiang Rai Chiang Rai (, ; , ) is the northernmost major city in Thailand, with a population of about 200,000 people. It is located in Mueang Chiang Rai District, Chiang Rai Province. Chiang Rai was established as a capital city in the reign of King Ma ...

in northern

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. The IAF was mainly involved in

strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) * Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm * Airstrike, ...

close air support Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

aerial reconnaissance Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance for a military or Strategy, strategic purpose that is conducted using reconnaissance aircraft. The role of reconnaissance can fulfil a variety of requirements including Artillery observer, artillery spott ...

bomber escort The escort fighter was a concept for a fighter aircraft designed to escort bombers to and from their targets. An escort fighter needed range long enough to reach the target, loiter over it for the duration of the raid to defend the bombers, a ...

and pathfinding missions for RAF and

USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

heavy bombers. RAF and IAF pilots would train by flying with their non-native air wings to gain combat experience and communication proficiency. Besides operations in the Burma Theatre IAF pilots participated in air operations in

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. In addition to the IAF, many native Indians and some 200 Indians resident in Britain volunteered to join the RAF and

Women's Auxiliary Air Force The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (), was the female auxiliary of the British Royal Air Force during the World War II, Second World War. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 181,000 at its peak ...

. One such volunteer was Sergeant Shailendra Eknath Sukthankar, who served as a navigator with No. 83 Squadron. Sukthankar was commissioned as an officer, and on 14 September 1943, received the DFC. Squadron Leader Sukthankar eventually completed 45 operations, 14 of them on board the RAF Museum's Avro Lancaster R5868. Another volunteer was Assistant Section Officer

Noor Inayat Khan Noor-un-Nisa Inayat Khan, GC (1 January 1914 – 13 September 1944), also known as Nora Inayat-Khan and Nora Baker, was a British resistance agent in France in the Second World War who served in the Special Operations Executive (SOE). The purpo ...

a Muslim pacifist and Indian nationalist who joined the WAAF, in November 1940, to fight against Nazism. Noor Khan served bravely as a secret agent with the

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

(SOE) in France, but was eventually betrayed and captured. Many of these Indian airmen were seconded or transferred to the expanding IAF such as Squadron Leader

Mohinder Singh Pujji Squadron Leader Mohinder Singh Pujji DFC (14 August 1918 – 18 September 2010), also known as Mahinder Singh Pujji, was a distinguished Royal Air Force fighter pilot and one of the first Indian Sikh pilots to volunteer with the Royal Air Force ...

DFC who led No. 4 Squadron IAF in Burma. During the war, the IAF experienced a phase of steady expansion. New aircraft added to the fleet included the US-built

Vultee Vengeance The Vultee A-31 Vengeance is an American dive bomber of World War II that was built by Vultee Aircraft. A modified version was called A-35. The Vengeance was not used operationally by the United States but was operated as a front-line aircraft ...

Douglas Dakota The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

, the British

Hawker Hurricane The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by ...

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allies of World War II, Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. It was the only British fighter produced conti ...

, and

Westland Lysander The Westland Lysander is a British Army cooperation aircraft, army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft that was used immediately before and during the Second World War. After becoming obsolete in the army co-operat ...

. 22 Distinguished Flying Crosses were awarded to personnel of the IAF. In recognition of the valiant service by the IAF,

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

conferred the

prefix A prefix is an affix which is placed before the stem of a word. Particularly in the study of languages, a prefix is also called a preformative, because it alters the form of the word to which it is affixed. Prefixes, like other affixes, can b ...

"Royal" in 1945. Thereafter the IAF was referred to as the ''Royal Indian Air Force''. In 1950, when India became a republic, the prefix was dropped and it reverted to being the Indian Air Force.

First years of independence (1947–1950)

Air Ministry Second World War Official Collection CI75

After it became independent from the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

in 1947,

was partitioned into the new states of the

Dominion of India The Dominion of India, officially the Union of India, * * was an independent dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations existing between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950. Until its Indian independence movement, independence, India had be ...

and the

Dominion of Pakistan The Dominion of Pakistan, officially Pakistan, was an independent federal dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations, which existed from 14 August 1947 to Pakistan Day, 23 March 1956. It was created by the passing of the Indian Independence ...

. Along the lines of the geographical partition, the assets of the air force were divided between the new countries. India's air force retained the name of the Royal Indian Air Force, but three of the ten operational squadrons and facilities, located within the borders of Pakistan, were transferred to the

Royal Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) (; ) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when requi ...

. The RIAF Roundel was changed to an interim 'Chakra' roundel derived from the

Ashoka Chakra The Ashoka Chakra (Transl: Ashoka's wheel) is an Indian symbol which is a depiction of the dharmachakra (English: "wheel of dharma"). It is so-called because it appears on a number of edicts of Ashoka the Great, most prominent among which is ...

. Around the same time,

conflict Conflict may refer to: Social sciences * Conflict (process), the general pattern of groups dealing with disparate ideas * Conflict continuum from cooperation (low intensity), to contest, to higher intensity (violence and war) * Conflict of ...

broke out between them over the control of the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir. With Pakistani forces moving into the state, its Maharaja decided to accede to India in order to receive military help. The day after, the

Instrument of Accession The Instrument of Accession was a legal document first introduced by the Government of India Act 1935 and used in 1947 to enable each of the rulers of the princely states under British paramountcy to join one of the new dominions of Dominion ...

was signed, the RIAF was called upon to transport troops into the war zone. And this was when a good management of logistics came into help. This led to the eruption of full-scale war between India and Pakistan, though there was no formal declaration of war. During the war, the RIAF did not engage the Pakistan Air Force in air-to-air combat; however, a couple of IAF

Hawker Tempest The Hawker Tempest is a British fighter aircraft that was primarily used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the Second World War. The Tempest, originally known as the ''Typhoon II'', was an improved derivative of the Hawker Typhoon, intended to a ...

fighters did intercept a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

Douglas

DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...

transport aircraft & tried to shoot it down but the pilot of the DC-3 (

Mukhtar Ahmad Dogar Mukhtar Ahmad Dogar (15 May 1922 – 5 June 2004) was the Pakistan Air Force bomber pilot and aerial warfare specialist who was the first military person to receive the Pakistani military award Sitara-e-Jurat. When India became a republic in 1950, the prefix 'Royal' was dropped from the Indian Air Force. At the same time, the current IAF roundel was adopted.

Congo crisis and Annexation of Goa (1960–1961)

The IAF saw significant conflict in 1960, when Belgium's 75-year rule over Congo ended abruptly, engulfing the nation in widespread violence and rebellion. The IAF activated No. 5 Squadron, equipped with

English Electric Canberra The English Electric Canberra is a British first-generation, jet-powered medium bomber. It was developed by English Electric during the mid- to late 1940s in response to a 1944 Air Ministry requirement for a successor to the wartime de Havilla ...

, to support the

United Nations Operation in the Congo The United Nations Operation in the Congo (, abbreviated ONUC) was a United Nations United Nations peacekeeping, peacekeeping force which was deployed in the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville), Republic of the Congo in 1960 in response to th ...

. The squadron started undertaking operational missions in November. The unit remained there until 1966, when the UN mission ended. Operating from Leopoldville and

Kamina Kamina is the capital city of Haut-Lomami Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Transport Kamina is known as an important railway node; three lines of the DRC railways run from Kamina toward the north, west, and south-east. The m ...

, the Canberras soon destroyed the rebel Air Force and provided the UN ground forces with its only long-range air support force. In late 1961, the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...

decided to attack the Portuguese colony of Goa after years of disagreement between

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

and

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

. The Indian Air Force was requested to provide support elements to the ground force in what was called Operation Vijay. Probing flights by some fighters and bombers were carried out from 8–18 December to draw out the

Portuguese Air Force The Portuguese Air Force () is the air force, aerial warfare force of Portugal. Locally it is referred to by the acronym FAP but internationally is often referred to by the acronym PRTAF. It is the youngest of the three branches of the Portuguese ...

, but to no avail. On 18 December, two waves of

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

bombers bombed the runway of Dabolim airfield taking care not to bomb the Terminals and the ATC tower. Two Portuguese transport aircraft (a

Super Constellation The Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation is an American aircraft, a member of the Lockheed Constellation aircraft line. The aircraft was colloquially referred to as the Super Connie. The L-1049 was Lockheed's response to the successful Douglas DC ...

and a

DC-6 The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, Douglas reworked it after the war to compete wi ...

) found on the airfield were left alone so that they could be captured intact. However the Portuguese pilots managed to take off the aircraft from the still damaged airfield and made their getaway to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Hunters Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

attacked the wireless station at Bambolim.

Vampires A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

were used to provide air support to the ground forces. In

Daman Daman may refer to: Places *Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, a union territory in India **Daman and Diu (Lok Sabha constituency) **Daman and Diu, former union territory of India, now part of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu **Goa ...

, Mystères were used to strike Portuguese gun positions. Ouragans (called Toofanis in the IAF) bombed the runways at Diu and destroyed the control tower, wireless station and the meteorological station. After the Portuguese surrendered the former colony was integrated into India.

Border disputes and changes in the IAF (1962–1971)

In 1962, border disagreements between China and India escalated to a war when China mobilised its troops across the Indian border. During the

Sino-Indian War The Sino–Indian War, also known as the China–India War or the Indo–China War, was an armed conflict between China and India that took place from October to November 1962. It was a military escalation of the Sino–Indian border dispu ...

, India's military planners failed to deploy and effectively use the IAF against the invading Chinese forces. This resulted in India losing a significant amount of advantage to the Chinese; especially in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

. On 24 April 1965, an Indian Ouragan strayed over the

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

i border and was forced to land by a Pakistani

Lockheed F-104 Starfighter The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is an American single-engine, supersonic interceptor. Created as a day fighter by Lockheed as one of the " Century Series" of fighter aircraft for the United States Air Force (USAF), it was developed into an ...

, the pilot was returned to India; however, the captured aircraft would be kept by the Pakistan Air Force(PAF) and ended up being displayed at the PAF museum in

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

. Three years after the Sino-Indian conflict, in 1965, Pakistan launched

Operation Gibraltar Operation Gibraltar was the codename of a military operation planned and executed by the Pakistan Army in the territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India in August 1965. The operation's strategy was to covertly cross the Line of Control (LoC) an ...

, strategy of Pakistan to infiltrate Jammu and Kashmir, and start a rebellion against Indian rule. This came to be known as the Second Kashmir War. This was the first time the IAF actively engaged an enemy air force. However, instead of providing close air support to the

, the IAF carried out independent raids against PAF bases. These bases were situated deep inside Pakistani territory, making IAF fighters vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire. During the course of the conflict, the PAF enjoyed technological superiority over the IAF and had achieved substantial strategic and tactical advantage due to the suddenness of the attack and advanced state of their air force. The IAF was restrained by the government from retaliating to PAF attacks in the eastern sector while a substantive part of its combat force was deployed there and could not be transferred to the western sector, against the possibility of Chinese intervention. Moreover, international (UN) stipulations and norms did not permit military force to be introduced into the Indian state of J&K beyond what was agreed during the 1949 ceasefire. Despite this, the IAF was able to prevent the PAF from gaining air superiority over conflict zones. The small and nimble IAF

Folland Gnat The Folland Gnat is a British compact swept-wing subsonic aircraft, subsonic fighter aircraft that was developed and produced by Folland Aircraft. Envisioned as an affordable light fighter in contrast to the rising cost and size of typical comb ...

s proved effective against the

F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...

s of the PAF earning it the nickname "Sabre Slayers". By the time the conflict had ended, the IAF lost 60–70 aircraft, while the PAF lost 43 aircraft. More than 60% of IAF's aircraft losses took place in

ground attack Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

missions to enemy ground-fire, since fighter-bomber aircraft would carry out repeated dive attacks on the same target. According to, Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh of the Indian Air Force, despite having been qualitatively inferior, IAF achieved air superiority in three days in the 1965 War. After the 1965 war, the IAF underwent a series of changes to improve its capabilities. In 1966, the

Para Commandos Para Commandos refers to * any military unit whose members are both paratroopers and commandos In particular: * Parachute Commando Regiments (Algeria) * Para Commando Brigade (Bangladesh) ** 1st Para-Commando Battalion ** 2nd Para-Commando Ba ...

regiment was created. To increase its logistics supply and rescue operations ability, the IAF inducted 72 HS 748s which were built by

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is an Indian public sector aerospace and defence company, headquartered in Bengaluru. Established on 23 December 1940, HAL is one of the oldest and largest aerospace and defence manufacturers in the world. H ...

(HAL) under licence from

Avro Avro (an initialism of the founder's name) was a British aircraft manufacturer. Its designs include the Avro 504, used as a trainer in the First World War, the Avro Lancaster, one of the pre-eminent bombers of the Second World War, and the d ...

. India started to put more stress on indigenous manufacture of

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domina ...

. As a result,

HAL HF-24 Marut The HAL HF-24 Marut ("Maruts, Spirit of the Tempest") is an Indian jet Fighter aircraft, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) during the 1960s and early 70s. The Marut was designed by the German ae ...

, designed by the famed German

aerospace engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

Kurt Tank Kurt Waldemar Tank (24 February 1898 – 5 June 1983) was a German aeronautical engineer and test pilot who led the design department at Focke-Wulf from 1931 to 1945. He was responsible for the creation of several important Luftwaffe aircraft of ...

, were inducted into the air force. HAL also started developing an improved version of the

, known as

HAL Ajeet The HAL Ajeet (; IAST: Ajīt, ''Undefeatable'' or ''Unconquerable'') was a jet-powered fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Indian aerospace manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). It was operated by the Indian Air Force ...

. At the same time, the IAF also started inducting Mach 2 capable Soviet

MiG-21 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet aircraft, jet fighter aircraft, fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan, Mikoyan-Gurevich OKB, Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nicknames in ...

and

Sukhoi Su-7 The Sukhoi Su-7 ( NATO designation name: Fitter-A) is a swept wing, supersonic fighter aircraft developed by the Soviet Union in 1955. Originally, it was designed as a tactical, low-level dogfighter, but was not successful in this role. On the ...

fighters.

Bangladesh Liberation War (1971)

By late 1971, the intensification of the independence movement in

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

lead to the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

between India and Pakistan. On 22 November 1971, 10 days before the start of a full-scale war, four PAF

jets attacked Indian and

Mukti Bahini The Mukti Bahini, initially called the Mukti Fauj, also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was a big tent armed guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military personnel, paramilitary personnel and civilians during the Ba ...

positions at Garibpur, near the international border. Two of the four PAF Sabres were shot down and one damaged by the IAF's

s. On 3 December, India formally

declared war A declaration of war is a formal act by which one state announces existing or impending war activity against another. The declaration is a performative speech act (or the public signing of a document) by an authorized party of a national govern ...

against Pakistan following massive

preemptive strikes A preemptive war is a war that is commenced in an attempt to repel or defeat a perceived imminent offensive or invasion, or to gain a strategic advantage in an impending (allegedly unavoidable) war ''shortly before'' that attack materializes. I ...

by the PAF against Indian Air Force installations in Srinagar, Ambala, Sirsa, Halwara and Jodhpur. However, the IAF did not suffer significantly because the leadership had anticipated such a move and precautions were taken. The Indian Air Force was quick to respond to Pakistani air strikes, following which the PAF carried out mostly defensive

sorties A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfar ...

. Within the first two weeks, the IAF had carried out almost 12,000 sorties over East Pakistan and also provided

to the advancing Indian Army. IAF also assisted the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy (IN) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Navy, maritime and Amphibious warfare, amphibious branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of the Naval Staff (India), Chief ...

in its operations against the

Pakistani Navy The Pakistan Navy (PN) (; ''romanized'': Pākistān Bahrí'a; ) is the naval warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Commi ...

in the

Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...

and

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

. On the western front, the IAF destroyed more than 20 Pakistani tanks, 4 APCs and a supply train during the

Battle of Longewala The Battle of Longewala (4–7 December 1971) was one of the first major engagements in the western sector during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, fought between assaulting Pakistani forces and Indian defenders at the Indian border post of Long ...

. The IAF undertook strategic bombing of

West Pakistan West Pakistan was the western province of Pakistan between One Unit, 1955 and Legal Framework Order, 1970, 1970, covering the territory of present-day Pakistan. Its land borders were with Afghanistan, India and Iran, with a maritime border wit ...

by carrying out raids on oil installations in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, the

Mangla Dam The Mangla Dam () is a multipurpose dam situated on the Jhelum River, lying in the Mirpur District of Pakistan administered Azad Kashmir and the Jhelum District in Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan. It is the List of largest dams, sixth-large ...

and a gas plant in Sindh. Similar strategy was also deployed in East Pakistan and as the IAF achieved complete

air superiority An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmospher ...

on the eastern front, the ordnance factories, runways, and other vital areas of East Pakistan were severely damaged. By the time Pakistani forces surrendered, the IAF destroyed 94 PAF Aircraft The IAF was able to conduct a wide range of missions – troop support; air combat; deep penetration strikes; para-dropping behind enemy lines; feints to draw enemy fighters away from the actual target; bombing; and reconnaissance. In contrast, the Pakistan Air Force, which was solely focused on air combat, was blown out of the subcontinent's skies within the first week of the war. Those PAF aircraft that survived took refuge at Iranian air bases or in concrete bunkers, refusing to offer a fight. Hostilities officially ended at 14:30 GMT on 17 December, after the fall of Dacca on 15 December. India claimed large gains of territory in West Pakistan (although pre-war boundaries were recognised after the war), and the independence of Pakistan's East wing as Bangladesh was confirmed. The IAF had flown over 16,000 sorties on both East and West fronts; including sorties by transport aircraft and helicopters. while the PAF flew about 30 and 2,840. More than 80 per cent of the IAF's sorties were close-support and interdiction, and according to neutral assessments about 45 IAF Aircraft were lost while,

lost 75 aircraft. Not including any F-6s, Mirage IIIs, or the six Jordanian F-104s which failed to return to their donors. But the imbalance in air losses was explained by the IAF's considerably higher sortie rate, and its emphasis on ground-attack missions. On the ground Pakistan suffered most, with 9,000 killed and 25,000 wounded while India lost 3,000 dead and 12,000 wounded. The loss of armoured vehicles was similarly imbalanced. This represented a major defeat for Pakistan.''The Encyclopedia of 20th Century Air Warfare'', edited by Chris Bishop (Amber publishing 1997, republished 2004 pages 384–387 ) Towards the end of the war, IAF's transport planes dropped leaflets over Dhaka urging the Pakistani forces to surrender, demoralising Pakistani troops in East Pakistan.

Incidents before Kargil (1984–1988)

In 1984, India launched

to capture the

Siachen Glacier The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range of the Himalayas, just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends in northeastern Kashmir. At long, it is the longest glaci ...

in the contested

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

region. In Op Meghdoot, IAF's

Mi-8 The Mil Mi-8 (, NATO reporting name: Hip) is a medium twin-turbine helicopter, originally designed by the Soviet Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) in the 1960s and introduced into the Soviet Air Force in 1968. Russian production of t ...

Chetak Chetak or Cetak is the name given in traditional literature to the horse ridden by Maharana Pratap at the Battle of Haldighati, fought on 18 June 1576 at Haldighati, in the Aravalli Mountains of Rajasthan, in western India. The story Hi ...

and

Cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

helicopters airlifted hundreds of Indian troops to Siachen. Launched on 13 April 1984, this military operation was unique because of Siachen's inhospitable terrain and climate. The military action was successful, given the fact that under a previous agreement, neither Pakistan nor India had stationed any personnel in the area. With India's successful

, it gained control of the

. India has established control over all of the long

and all of its tributary glaciers, as well as the three main passes of the Saltoro Ridge immediately west of the glacier—

Sia La Sia La is a mountain pass situated on Saltoro Ridge, in Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan some north-northwest of map point NJ9842 which defined the end of the 1972 Line of Control between India and Pakistan as part of the Simla Agreement. Sia L ...

Bilafond La Bilafond La (meaning "Pass of the Butterflies" in Balti language), also known as the Saltoro Pass, is a mountain pass situated on Saltoro Ridge, sitting immediately west of the vast Siachen Glacier, some directly north of map point NJ 98042 ...

, and

Gyong La Gyong La is a mountain pass situated on Saltoro Ridge southwest of the vast Siachen Glacier, some directly north of map point NJ9842 which defined the end of the 1972 Line of Control between India and Pakistan. With Pakistan controlling areas ...

. Pakistan controls the glacial valleys immediately west of the Saltoro Ridge. According to the ''TIME'' magazine, India gained more than of territory because of its military operations in Siachen. Following the inability to negotiate an end to the Sri Lankan Civil War, and to provide humanitarian aid through an unarmed convoy of ships, the Indian Government decided to carry out an airdrop of the humanitarian supplies on the evening of 4 June 1987 designated Operation Poomalai (

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

: Garland) or Eagle Mission 4. Five An-32s escorted by four

Mirage 2000 The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French multirole, single-engine, delta wing, fourth-generation jet fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was designed in the late 1970s as a lightweight fighter to replace the Mirage III for the French ...

of 7 Sqn AF, 'The Battleaxes', carried out the supply drop which faced no opposition from the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. Another

orbited 150 km away, acting as an airborne relay of messages to the entire fleet since they would be outside radio range once they descended to low levels. The Mirage 2000 escort formation was led by Wg Cdr Ajit Bhavnani, with Sqn Ldrs Bakshi, NA Moitra and JS Panesar as his team members and Sqn Ldr KG Bewoor as the relay pilot. Sri Lanka accused India of "blatant violation of sovereignty". India insisted that it was acting only on humanitarian grounds. In 1987, the IAF supported the

Indian Peace Keeping Force Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was the Indian military contingent performing a peacekeeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990. It was formed under the mandate of the 1987 Indo-Sri Lankan Accord that aimed to end the Sri Lanka ...

(IPKF) in northern and eastern

Operation Pawan Operation Pawan ( ''Kãryvãhi Pavan'', lit. "Operation Wind") was the code name assigned to the operation by the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to take control of Jaffna from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), better known as the T ...

. About 70,000 sorties were flown by the IAF's transport and helicopter force in support of nearly 100,000 troops and paramilitary forces without a single aircraft lost or mission aborted. IAF An-32s maintained a continuous air link between air bases in South India and Northern Sri Lanka transporting men, equipment, rations and evacuating casualties. Mi-8s supported the ground forces and also provided air transportation to the Sri Lankan civil administration during the elections. Mi-25s of No. 125 Helicopter Unit were utilised to provide suppressive fire against militant strong points and to interdict coastal and clandestine riverine traffic. On the night of 3 November 1988, the Indian Air Force mounted special operations to airlift a parachute battalion group from

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, non-stop over to the remote Indian Ocean archipelago of the Maldives in response to Maldivian president Gayoom's request for military help against a mercenary invasion in

. The

IL-76 The Ilyushin Il-76 (; NATO reporting name: Candid) is a multi-purpose, fixed-wing, four-engine turbofan strategic airlifter designed by the Soviet Union's Ilyushin design bureau as a commercial freighter in 1967, to replace the Antonov An-12. ...

s of No. 44 Squadron landed at Hulhule at 0030 hours and the Indian paratroopers secured the airfield and restored Government rule at Male within hours. Four Mirage 2000 aircraft of 7 Sqn, led by Wg Cdr AV 'Doc' Vaidya, carried out a show of force early that morning, making low-level passes over the islands.

Kargil War (1999)

On 11 May 1999, the Indian Air Force was called in to provide close air support to the Indian Army at the height of the ongoing

Kargil conflict The Kargil War, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Ladakh, then part of the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir and along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also ...

with the use of helicopters. The IAF strike was code named

Operation Safed Sagar Operation Safed Sagar (, lit. "Operation White Ocean") was the code name assigned to the Indian Air Force's role in acting jointly with the Indian Army during the 1999 Kargil war that was aimed at flushing out regular and irregular troops o ...

. The first strikes were launched on 26 May, when the Indian Air Force struck infiltrator positions with fighter aircraft and

helicopter gunship A gunship is a military aircraft armed with heavy aircraft guns, primarily intended for attacking ground targets either as airstrike or as close air support. In modern usage the term "gunship" refers to fixed-wing aircraft having laterally-mo ...

s. The initial strikes saw MiG-27s carrying out offensive sorties, with

s and later

MiG-29 The Mikoyan MiG-29 (; NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) is a twinjet, twin-engine fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the MiG-29, along with the large ...

s providing fighter cover. The IAF also deployed its radars and the

fighters in vast numbers to keep check on Pakistani military movements across the border.

Srinagar Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...

Airport was at this time closed to civilian air-traffic and dedicated to the Indian Air Force. On 27 May, the Indian Air Force suffered its first fatality when it lost a

and a

MiG-27 The Mikoyan MiG-27 (; NATO reporting name: Flogger-D/J) is a variable-sweep ground-attack aircraft, originally built by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union and later licence-produced in India by Hindustan Aeronautics as t ...

in quick succession. The following day, while on an offensive sortie, a Mi-17 was shot down by three

Stinger A stinger (or sting) is a sharp organ found in various animals (typically insects and other arthropods) capable of injecting venom, usually by piercing the epidermis of another animal. An insect sting is complicated by its introduction of ve ...

missiles and lost its entire crew of four. Following these losses the IAF immediately withdrew helicopters from offensive roles as a measure against the threat of Man-portable air-defence systems (MANPAD). On 30 May, the

s were introduced in offensive capability, as they were deemed better in performance under the high-altitude conditions of the conflict zone. Mirage 2000s were not only better equipped to counter the MANPAD threat compared to the MiGs, but also gave IAF the ability to carry out aerial raids at night. The MiG-29s were used extensively to provide fighter escort to the Mirage 2000. Radar transmissions of Pakistani F-16s were picked up repeatedly, but these aircraft stayed away. The Mirages successfully targeted enemy camps and logistic bases in Kargil and severely disrupted their supply lines. Mirage 2000s were used for strikes on Muntho Dhalo and the heavily defended

Tiger Hill The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is tradition ...

and paved the way for their early recapture. At the height of the conflict, the IAF was conducting over forty sorties daily over the Kargil region. By 26 July, the Indian forces had successfully repulsed the Pakistani forces from Kargil.

Post Kargil incidents (1999–present)

Since the late 1990s, the Indian Air Force has been modernising its fleet to counter challenges in the new century. The fleet size of the IAF has decreased to 33 squadrons during this period because of the retirement of older aircraft. Still, India maintains the fourth largest air force in the world. The IAF plans to raise its strength to 42 squadrons. Self-reliance is the main aim that is being pursued by the defence research and manufacturing agencies. On 10 August 1999, IAF

s intercepted a

Pakistan Navy The Pakistan Navy (PN) (; ''romanized'': Pākistān Bahrí'a; ) is the naval warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Com ...

Breguet Atlantique Breguet may refer to: * Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer **Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), Swiss watchmaker ** Louis-François-Clement Breguet (1804–1883), French physicist, watchmaker, electrical and telegraph work * Breguet Aviation, ...

which was flying over

Sir Creek Sir Creek ( ), originally Ban Ganga, is a 96 km (60 mi) tidal estuary in the uninhabited marshlands of the Indus River Delta on the border between India and Pakistan. The creek flows into the Arabian Sea and separates Gujarat state in India f ...

, a disputed territory. The aircraft was shot down killing all 16 Pakistani Navy personnel on board. India claimed that the Atlantic was on a mission to gather information on IAF air defence, a charge emphatically rejected by Pakistan which argued that the unarmed aircraft was on a training mission. On 2 August 2002, the Indian Air Force bombed Pakistani posts along the

Line of Control The Line of Control (LoC) is a military control line between the Indian and Pakistanicontrolled parts of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir—a line which does not constitute a legally recognized international boundary, but ser ...

in the Kel sector, following inputs about Pakistani military buildup near the sector. On 20 August 2013, the Indian Air Force created a world record by performing the highest landing of a

C-130J The Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. The C-130J is a comprehensive update of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, with new engines, flight deck, and other systems. The C-130J is th ...

at the

Daulat Beg Oldi Daulat Beg Oldi (also Oldie, DBO) is a traditional campsite and current military base located in the midst of the Karakoram Range in northern Ladakh, India. It is on the historic trade route between Ladakh and the Tarim Basin, and is the last c ...

airstrip in Ladakh at the height of . The medium-lift aircraft will be used to deliver troops, supplies and improve communication networks. The aircraft belonged to the ''Veiled Vipers'' squadron based at Hindon Air Force Station. On 13 July 2014, two

s were sent from Jodhpur Airport#Jodhpur Air Force Station, Jodhpur Air Base to investigate a Turkish Airlines aircraft over Jaisalmer when it repeated an Aircraft registration, identification code, provided by another commercial passenger plane that had already entered Indian airspace before it. The flights were on their way to Mumbai and Delhi, and the planes were later allowed to proceed after their credentials were verified.

2019 Balakot airstrike

Following heightened tensions between India and Pakistan after the 2019 Pulwama attack that was carried out by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) which killed forty servicemen of the Central Reserve Police Force, a group of twelve

fighter planes from the Indian Air Force carried out air strikes on alleged JeM bases in Chakothi and Muzaffarabad in the Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Furthermore, the Mirage 2000s targeted an alleged JeM training camp in Balakot, a town in the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Pakistan claimed that the Indian aircraft had only dropped bombs in the forest area demolishing pine trees near the Jaba village which is away from Balakot and Indian officials claimed to bomb and kill a large number of terrorists in the airstrike.

2019 India–Pakistan standoff

On 27 February 2019, in retaliation for the IAF bombing of an alleged terrorist hideout in Balakot, a group of PAF Dassault Mirage 5, Mirage-5 and CAC/PAC JF-17 Thunder, JF-17 fighters allegedly conducted an airstrike against certain ground targets across the

. They were intercepted by a group of IAF fighters consisting of Sukhoi Su-30MKI, Su-30MKI and

jets. An ensuing dogfight began. According to India, one PAF F-16 was shot down by an IAF MiG-21 piloted by Abhinandan Varthaman, while Pakistan denied use of F-16s in the operation. According to Pakistan, a MiG-21 and a Su-30MKI were shot down, while India claims that only the MiG-21 was shot down. Indian officials rejected Pakistani claims of shooting down an Su-30MKI stating that it's impossible to hide an aircraft crash as of now in a populated area like Kashmir and said it's a coverup for the loss of F16. While the downed MiG-21's pilot had ejected successfully, he landed in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and was captured by the Pakistan military. Before his capture he was assaulted by a few locals. After a couple of days of captivity, the captured pilot was released by Pakistan per Third Geneva Convention, Third Geneva convention obligations. While Pakistan denied involvement of any of its F-16 aircraft in the strike, the IAF presented remnants of AIM-120 AMRAAM, AMRAAM missiles that are only carried by the F-16s within the PAF as proof of their involvement. Unnamed US officials told ''Foreign Policy'' magazine in April 2019 that an audit didn't find any Pakistani F-16s missing. However, this was not confirmed by the United States, which cited it as bilateral matter between US and Pakistan. Various international military observers reject Indian claim of shooting down PAF F-16. IAF also lost a Mil Mi-17, MI-17 helicopter during Indo-Pakistan standoff 2019. On the same day of 27 February 2019, around twenty minutes before the MiG-21 downing, an Indian Mil Mi-17 helicopter crashed, killing six Indian Air Force personnel and one civilian in the Budgam district. It was under the command of squadron leaders Siddarth Vashista and Ninad Mandavgane and crashed within ten minutes of take-off from the Srinagar air base. Four other IAF personnel were flight engineer Vishal Kumar Pandey, sergeant Vikrant Sehrawat, corporals Deepak Pandey and Pankaj Kumars that were killed along with two pilots. In October 2019, IAF confirmed that the helicopter was shot down by an Indian SPYDER surface-to-air missile mistaking it as an PAF aircraft and said that five personnel were held guilty for the lapses. IAF dismissed Group Captain Suman Roy Choudhry Chief Operations Officer (COO) of the Srinagar Air Force Station from his service in 2023 for his negligence during PAF strikes.

Structure

The

is the Commander-in-chief#India, Supreme Commander of all Indian armed forces and by virtue of that fact is the national Commander-in-chief of the Air Force. The Chief of the Air Staff with the rank of Air Chief Marshal (India), Air chief marshal is the Commander In January 2002, the Government of India, government conferred the rank of Marshal of the Indian Air Force on

making him the first and only ''five-star rank, Five-star'' officer with the Indian Air Force and ceremonial chief of the air force.

Commands

The Indian Air Force is divided into five operational and two functional Command (military formation), commands. Each Command is headed by an Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief with the rank of Air Marshal. The purpose of an operational command is to conduct military operations using aircraft within its area of responsibility, whereas the responsibility of functional commands is to maintain combat readiness. Aside from the Training Command at Bangalore, the primary flight training is done at the Air Force Academy (India), Air Force Academy (located in Hyderabad), followed by operational training at various other schools. Advanced officer training for command positions is also conducted at the Defence Services Staff College; specialised advanced flight training schools are located at Bidar, Karnataka and Hakimpet, Telangana (also the location for helicopter training). Technical schools are found at a number of other locations. VayuBhawanDelhi

''Note: + = Functional Command''

Wings

A Wing (air force unit), wing is a formation intermediate between a command and a squadron. It generally consists of two or three IAF squadrons and helicopter units, along with forward base support units (FBSU). FBSUs do not have or host any squadrons or helicopter units but act as transit airbases for routine operations. In times of war, they can become fully fledged air bases playing host to various squadrons. In all, about 47 wings and 19 FBSUs make up the IAF. Wings are typically commanded by an Air commodore (India), air commodore.

Stations

Within each operational command are anywhere from nine to sixteen Military air base, bases or stations. Smaller than wings, but similarly organised, stations are static units commanded by a Group captain (India), group captain. A station typically has one wing and one or two squadrons assigned to it.

Squadrons and units

Squadron (aviation), Squadrons are the field units and formations attached to static locations. Thus, a flying squadron or unit is a sub-unit of an air force station which carries out the primary task of the IAF. A fighter squadron consists of 18 aircraft; all fighter squadrons are headed by a commanding officer with the rank of Wing Commander (rank), wing commander. Some transport squadrons and helicopter units are headed by a commanding officer with the rank of Group captain (India), group captain.

Flights

Flight (military unit), Flights are sub-divisions of Squadron (aviation), squadrons, commanded by a squadron leader. Each flight consists of two sections.

Sections

The smallest unit is the section, led by a flight lieutenant. Each section consists of three aircraft. Within this formation structure, IAF has several service branches for day-to-day operations. They are:

Garud Commando Force

The Garud commandos are the special forces of the Indian Air Force (IAF). Their tasks include counter-terrorism, hostage rescue, providing security to IAF's vulnerably located assets and various air force-specific special operations. First conceived in 2002, this unit was officially established on 6 February 2004. All Garuds are volunteers who are imparted a 52-week basic training, which includes a three-month probation followed by special operations training, basic airborne training and other warfare and survival skills. The last phase of basic training sees Garuds been deployed to get combat experience. Advanced training follows, which includes specialised weapons training. The mandated tasks of the Garuds include direct action, special reconnaissance, rescuing downed pilots in hostile territory, establishing airbases in hostile territory and providing air-traffic control to these airbases. The Garuds also undertake suppression of enemy air defences and the destruction of other enemy assets such as radars, evaluation of the outcomes of Indian airstrikes and use laser designators to guide Indian airstrikes. The security of IAF installations and assets are usually performed by the Air Force Police and the Defence Security Corps even though some critical assets are protected by the Garuds.

Defence Space Agency

The Defence Space Agency, an Indian Armed Forces Tri-Service Commands, integrated tri-services agency, which draws its personnel from all the three services of the Indian armed forces, is set up to operate the Space warfare, space-warfare and Geospatial intelligence, Satellite Intelligence assets of India. Unlike an aerospace command, where the air force controls most of its activities, the Defence Space Agency envisages co-operation and co-ordination between the three services as well as civilian agencies dealing with space. India currently has 10 military satellites.

Display teams

''The Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT)'' (''Surya Kiran'' is Sanskrit for ''Sun Rays'') is an aerobatics demonstration team of the Indian Air Force. They were formed in 1996 and are successors to the ''Thunderbolts''. The team has a total of 13 pilots (selected from the fighter stream of the IAF) and operate 9 BAE Hawk Mk.132, Bae Hawk mk.132 painted in a "day-glo orange" and white Color scheme, colour scheme. The Surya Kiran team were conferred squadron status in 2006, and presently have the designation of 52 Squadron (''"The Sharks"''). The team is based at the Indian Air Force Station at Bidar. The team earlier used to fly HAL HJT-16 Kiran. ''Sarang'' (Sanskrit for ''Peacock'') is the Helicopter Display Team of the Indian Air Force. The team was formed in October 2003 and their first public performance was at the Asian Aerospace Show, Singapore, 2004. The team earlier used to fly four HAL Dhruvs but that was upgraded to five on the 91st Air Force day held in Prayagraj. The choppers are painted in red and white with a peacock figure at each side of the fuselage. The team is based at the Sulur Air Force Station, Coimbatore.

Personnel

Over the years reliable sources provided notably divergent estimates of the personnel strength of the Indian Air Force after analysing open-source intelligence. In 2006, Anthony Cordesman estimated that strength to be 170,000 in the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) publication ''"The Asian Conventional Military Balance in 2006"''. In 2010, James Hackett revised that estimate to an approximate strength of 127,000 active personnel in the IISS publication ''"Military Balance 2010"''. , the Indian Air Force has a sanctioned strength of 12,625 officers (12,142 serving with 483 under strength), and 142,917 airmen (129,094 serving with 13,823 under strength).

Rank structure

The rank structure of the Indian Air Force is based on that of the

. The highest rank attainable in the IAF is Marshal of the Indian Air Force, conferred by the President of India after exceptional service during wartime. MIAF

is the only officer to have achieved this rank. The head of the Indian Air Force is the Chief of the Air Staff, who holds the rank of Air Chief Marshal (India), Air Chief Marshal.

Officers

Anyone holding Indian citizenship can apply to be an officer in the Air Force as long as they satisfy the eligibility criteria. There are four entry points to become an officer. Male applicants, who are between the ages of 16 and 19 and have passed high school graduation, can apply at the ''Intermediate'' level. Men and women applicants, who have graduated from college (three-year course) and are between the ages of 18 and 28, can apply at the ''Graduate'' level entry. Graduates of engineering colleges can apply at the ''Engineer'' level if they are between the ages of 18 and 28 years. The age limit for the flying and ground duty branch is 23 years of age and for technical branch is 28 years of age. After completing a master's degree, men and women between the ages of 18 and 28 years can apply at the ''Post Graduate'' level. Post graduate applicants do not qualify for the flying branch. For the technical branch the age limit is 28 years and for the ground duty branch it is 25. At the time of application, all applicants below 25 years of age must be single. The IAF selects candidates for officer training from these applicants. After completion of training, a candidate is commissioned as a Flying Officer. In May 2022 Abhilasha Barak became the first ever woman combat aviator in the Indian Army

Airmen

Indian Air Force Soldier guarding India Gate

The duty of an airman is to make sure that all the air and ground operations run smoothly. From operating Air Defence systems to fitting missiles, they are involved in all activities of an air base and give support to various technical and non-technical jobs. The airmen of Technical trades are responsible for maintenance, repair and prepare for use the propulsion system of aircraft and other airborne weapon delivery system, Radar, Voice/Data transmission and reception equipment, latest airborne weapon delivery systems, all types of light, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic systems of airborne missiles, aero engines, aircraft fuelling equipment and heavy duty mechanical vehicles, cranes and loading equipment etc. The competent and qualified Airmen from Technical trades also participate in flying as Flight Engineers, Flight Signallers and Flight Gunners. The recruitment of personnel below officer rank is conducted through All India Selection Tests and Recruitment Rallies. All India Selection Tests are conducted among 15 Airmen Selection Centres (ASCs) located all over India. These centres are under the direct functional control of Central Airmen Selection Board (CASB), with administrative control and support by respective commands. The role of CASB is to carry out selection and enrolment of airmen from the Airmen Selection Centres for their respective commands. Candidates initially take a written test at the time of application. Those passing the written test undergo a physical fitness test, an interview conducted in English, and medical examination. Candidates for training are selected from individuals passing the battery of tests, on the basis of their performance. Upon completion of training, an individual becomes an Airman. Some Master warrant officer, MWOs and Warrant officer, WOs are granted honorary commission in the last year of their service as an honorary Flying Officer or Flight Lieutenant before retiring from the service.

Honorary officers

Sachin Tendulkar was the first sportsperson and the first civilian without an aviation background to be awarded the honorary rank of group captain by the Indian Air Force.

Non combatants enrolled and civilians

Non combatants enrolled (NCs(E)) were established in British India as personal assistants to the officer class, and are equivalent to the ''orderly'' or ''sahayak'' of the Indian Army. Almost all the commands have some percentage of civilian strength which are central government employees. These are regular ranks which are prevalent in ministries. They are usually not posted outside their stations and are employed in administrative and non-technical work.

Training and education

The Indian Armed Forces have set up numerous military academies across India for training its personnel, such as the National Defence Academy (India), National Defence Academy (NDA). Besides the tri-service institutions, the Indian Air Force has a Training Command, Indian Air Force, Training Command and several training establishments. While technical and other support staff are trained at various Ground Training Schools, the pilots are trained at the Air Force Academy, Dundigul (located in Hyderabad). The Basic Flying Training School (India), Pilot Training Establishment at Allahabad, the Air Force Administrative College at Coimbatore, the Institute of Aerospace Medicine at Bangalore, the Air Force Technical College, Bangalore at Jalahalli, the Tactics and Air Combat and Defence Establishment at Gwalior, and the Paratrooper's Training School at

are some of the other training establishments of the IAF.

Aircraft inventory

The Indian Air Force has aircraft and equipment of Russian (erstwhile Soviet Union), British, French, Israeli, US and Indian origins with Russian aircraft dominating its inventory. HAL produces some of the Russian and British aircraft in India under licence. The exact number of aircraft in service with the Indian Air Force cannot be determined with precision from open sources. Various reliable sources provide notably divergent estimates for a variety of high-visibility aircraft. Flight International estimates there to be around 1,750 aircraft in service with the IAF, while the International Institute for Strategic Studies provides a similar estimate of 1,850 aircraft. Both sources agree there are approximately 900 combat capable (fighter, attack etc.) aircraft in the IAF.

Multi-role fighters and strike aircraft

The Indian Air Force has been reported to have a shortage of combat aircraft count. As of March 2025, the IAF has 31 List of active Indian Air Force aircraft squadrons#Combat, combat squadrons as against a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons. This strength is on par with the IAF's fighter fleet during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965. The squadron strength of the IAF had peaked in 1996 at 41 squadrons but dwindled gradually to 35 units in 2013 and to 31 in 2025. In response, the Ministry of Defence (India), Ministry of Defence appointed a five-member Future of the Indian Air Force#Parliamentary Panel report, Empowered Committee for Capability Enhancement of IAF which analysed and reported the "key thrust areas and recommendations" necessary for "achieving the desired capability enhancement goals" to the Ministry. *Dassault Rafale: the latest addition to India's aircraft arsenal; India has signed a deal for 36 Dassault Rafale Multirole combat aircraft, multirole

. As of June 2022, 36 Rafale fighters are in service with the Indian Air Force. *HAL Tejas: IAF MiG-21s are to be replaced by domestically built HAL Tejas. The first Tejas IAF unit, No. 45 Squadron IAF ''Flying Daggers'', was formed on 1 July 2016, followed by No. 18 Squadron IAF "Flying Bullets" on 27 May 2020. Initially stationed at Bangalore, the first squadron was then to be transferred to its home base in Sulur, Tamil Nadu. In February 2021, the Indian Air Force ordered 83 Tejas, including 40 Mark 1, 73 single-seat Mark 1As and 10 two-seat Mark 1 trainers. Total 123 ordered. * Sukhoi Su 30 MKI

Sukhoi Su-30MKI: the IAF's primary air superiority fighter, with additional air-to-ground (strike) mission capability, is the Sukhoi Su-30MKI. 260 Su-30MKIs are in service. *Mikoyan MiG-29: the MiG-29, known as ''Baaz'' (Hindi language, Hindi for Hawk), is a dedicated air superiority fighter, constituting the IAF's second line of defence after the Su-30MKI. There are 69 MiG-29s in service, all of which have been recently upgraded to the MiG-29UPG standard, after the decision was made in 2016 to upgrade the remaining 21 MiG-29s to the UPG standard. *Dassault Mirage 2000: the Mirage 2000, known as ''Vajra'' (Sanskrit language, Sanskrit for diamond or thunderbolt) in Indian service. The IAF currently operates 49 Mirage 2000Hs and 8 Mirage 2000 TH all of which are currently being upgraded to the Mirage 2000-5 MK2 standard with Indian specific modifications and 2 Mirage 2000-5 MK2 are in service . The IAF's Mirage 2000 were scheduled to be phased out by 2030. *SEPECAT Jaguar: the Jaguar, known as the ''Shamsher'', serves as the IAF's primary Attack aircraft, ground attack force. The IAF currently operates 139 Jaguars. The first batch of DARIN-1 Jaguars are now going through a DARIN-3 upgrade being equipped with EL/M-2052 AESA radars, and an improved jamming suite plus new avionics. These aircraft are scheduled to be phased out by 2030. * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21: the MiG-21 serves as an interceptor aircraft in the IAF, which phased out most of its MiG-21s and planned to keep only the 125 aircraft upgraded to the MiG-21 Bison standard. The phase-out date for these interceptors has been postponed several times. Initially set for 2014–2017, it was later postponed to 2019. Current phase-out was scheduled for 2021–2022.

Airborne early warning and control system

The IAF operates three DRDO AEW&CS, Netra Embraer ERJ 145, Embraer ERJ 145I aircraft. The IAF also operates the EL/W-2090 Phalcon AEW&C incorporated in a Beriev A-50 platform. A total of three such systems are currently in service, with two further potential orders. India is also investing in a DRDO project to develop six new Airborne AEW&C aircraft, as an upgrade to the DRDO AEW&CS, Netra systems.

Aerial refuelling

The IAF currently operates six Ilyushin Il-78MKIs in the aerial refueling (tanker) role.

Transport aircraft

For strategic airlift operations, the IAF uses the Ilyushin Il-76, known as ''Gajraj'' (Hindi for King Elephant) in Indian service. The IAF operated 17 Il-76s in 2010, which are in the process of being replaced by C-17 Globemaster IIIs. IAF

s are used by special forces for combined Army-Air Force operations. India purchased six C-130Js; however, one crashed at Gwalior on 28 March 2014 while on a training mission, killing all 5 on board and destroying the aircraft. The Antonov An-32, known in Indian service as the ''Sutlej'' (named after Sutlej River), serves as a medium transport aircraft in the IAF. The aircraft is also used in bombing roles and paradropping operations. The IAF currently operates 105 An-32s, all of which are being upgraded. The IAF operates 53 Dornier 228 to fulfil its light transport duties. The IAF also operates Boeing 737s and Embraer ECJ-135 Legacy aircraft as Very important person, VIP transports and passenger airliners for troops. 2 specially modified Boeing 777 are used for both the Indian President of India, President and Prime Minister of India, Prime Minister under the call sign Air India One. The Hawker Siddeley HS 748 once formed the backbone of the IAF's transport fleet, but are now used mainly for training and communication duties. A replacement is under consideration.

Trainer aircraft

The HAL HPT-32 Deepak is IAF's basic flight training aircraft for cadets. The HPT-32 was grounded in July 2009 following a crash that killed two senior flight instructors, but was revived in May 2010 and is to be fitted with a parachute recovery system (PRS) to enhance survivability during an emergency in the air and to bring the trainer down safely. The HPT-32 is to be phased out soon. initially by 75 trainers Pilatus aircraft, and followed by 70 HTT-40 trainers. 36 more HTT-40s to be ordered once fleet is operational. The IAF uses the HAL HJT-16 Kiran, HAL HJT-16 Kiran mk.I for intermediate flight training of cadets, while the HJT-16 Kiran mk.II provides advanced flight and weapons training. The HAL HJT-16 Kiran Mk.2 is also operated by the Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) of the IAF. The Kiran is to be replaced by the HAL HJT-36 Sitara. The BAE Hawk, BAE Hawk Mk 132 serves as an advanced jet trainer in the IAF and is progressively replacing the Kiran Mk.II. The IAF has begun the process of converting the Surya Kiran display team to Hawks. A total of 106 BAE Hawk trainers have been ordered by the IAF of which 39 have entered service . IAF also ordered 72 Pipistrel Virus SW 80 microlight aircraft for basic training purpose.

Helicopters

The HAL Dhruv serves primarily as a light utility helicopter in the IAF. In addition to transport and utility roles, newer Dhruvs are also used as attack helicopters. Four Dhruvs are also operated by the Indian Air Force Sarang (military), Sarang Helicopter Display Team. The HAL Chetak is a light utility helicopter and is used primarily for training, rescue and light transport roles in the IAF. The HAL Chetak is being gradually replaced by HAL Dhruv. The HAL Cheetah is a light utility helicopter used for high altitude operations. It is used for both transport and search-and-rescue missions in the IAF. IAF LCH-Image3

The Mil Mi-8 and the Mil Mi-17, Mi-17 1V and Mi-17V 5 are operated by the IAF for medium lift strategic and utility roles. The Mi-8 is being progressively replaced by the Mi-17 series of helicopters. The IAF has ordered 22 Boeing AH-64 Apache, Boeing AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, 68 HAL Light Combat Helicopters (LCH), 35 HAL Rudra attack helicopters, 15 CH-47F Chinook heavy lift helicopters and 150 Mi-17V-5s to replace and augment its existing fleet of Mi-8s, Mi-17s, and Mi-24s. The Mil Mi-26 serves as a heavy lift helicopter in the IAF. It can also be used to transport troops or as a flying ambulance. The IAF currently operates three Mi-26s. The Mil Mi-24, Mil Mi-35 serves primarily as an attack helicopter in the IAF. The Mil Mi-35 can also act as a low-capacity troop transport. The IAF currently operates two squadrons (No. 104 Firebirds and No. 125 Gladiators) of Mi-25/35s.

Unmanned aerial vehicles

The IAF currently uses the IAI Searcher, IAI Searcher II and IAI Heron for reconnaissance and surveillance purposes. The IAI Harpy serves as an Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) which is designed to attack radar systems. The IAF also operates the DRDO Lakshya which serves as realistic towed aerial sub-targets for live fire training.

Missile systems

Anti-tank guided missiles

Ballistic and cruise missiles

Air defence systems

Future

The number of aircraft in the IAF has been decreasing from the late 1990s due to the retirement of older aircraft and several crashes. To deal with the depletion of force levels, the IAF has started to modernize its fleet. This includes both the upgrade of existing aircraft, equipment and infrastructure as well as induction of new aircraft and equipment, both indigenous and imported. As new aircraft enter service and numbers recover, the IAF plans to have a fleet of 42 squadrons.

Renaming

IAF has sent a proposal to rename itself as Indian Air and Space Force (IASF). It has declared this as a part of its current drive to become a credible space power.

Expected future acquisitions

Single-engined fighter

On 3 January 2017, Minister of Defence (India), Minister of Defence Manohar Parrikar addressed a media conference and announced plans for a competition to select a Strategic Partner to deliver "... 200 new single engine fighters to be made in India, which will easily cost around (USD)$45 million apiece without weaponry" with an expectation that Lockheed Martin (USA) and Saab Group, Saab (Sweden) will pitch the F-16 Block 70 and Gripen, respectively. An MoD official said that a global tender will be put to market in the first quarter of 2018, with a private company nominated as the strategic partners production agency followed by a two or more year process to evaluate technical and financial bids and conduct trials, before the final government-to-government deal in 2021. This represents 11 squadrons of aircraft plus several 'attrition' aircraft.Parrikar: India to Kick Off Competition for New Foreign Single-Engine Fighters
, Vivek Raghuvanshi, DefenseNews.com, 3 January 2017 India is also planning to set up an assembly line of American General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon Block 70 in Bengaluru. It is not yet confirmed whether IAF will induct these aircraft or not. In 2018, the defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman gave the go ahead to scale up the manufacturing of Tejas at HAL and also to export Tejas. She is quoted saying "We are not ditching the LCA. We have not gone for anything instead of Tejas. We are very confident that Tejas Mark II will be a big leap forward to fulfil the single engine fighter requirement of the forces.". IAF committed to buy 201 Mark-II variant of the Tejas taking the total order of Tejas to 324. The government also scrapped the plan to import single engine fighters leading to reduction in reliance on imports thereby strengthening the domestic defence industry. The IAF also submitted a request for information to international suppliers for a stealth unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV).

Current acquisitions

IAF's current orders include * HAL Tejas - 73 Mk 1A on order, 17 trainers on order. 97 more cleared for order. * HAL HTT-40: 70 on order * HAL Light Combat Helicopter, HAL Prachand: 66 on order * HAL LUH, HAL Light Utility Helicopter (LUH): 6 on order * EADS CASA C-295: 55 on order * IAI Harop UCAVs * General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper, General Atomic MQ-9B Predator: 8 on order

DRDO and HAL projects

Indian defence company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, HAL and Defense Research Organization DRDO are developing several aircraft for the IAF including:- * HAL Tejas Mk2, HAL Tejas Mk 2 * Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, HAL AMCA (5th generation aircraft) * NAL Saras * HAL HJT-36 Yashas * DRDO Rustom * TAPAS-BH-201 * AURA UAV, DRDO Ghatak UCAV. * HAL Combat Air Teaming System, HAL CATS: DRDO and HAL has also engaged in the HAL Combat Air Teaming System, unmanned combat system. According to this, HAL will develop the whole family of unmanned aircraft by the end of 2024–25 * Akash-NG is also being developed by DRDO which will be the same range of Barak 8 (missile), Barak 8. * DRDO has now successfully developed the nuclear capable Nirbhay cruise missile.

Network-centric warfare

The Air Force Network (AFNET), a robust digital information grid that enabled quick and accurate threat responses, was launched in 2010, helping the IAF become a truly network-centric air force. AFNET is a secure communication network linking command and control centres with offensive aircraft, sensor platforms and ground missile batteries. Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS), an automated system for Air Defence operations will ride the AFNet backbone integrating ground and airborne sensors, weapon systems and command and control nodes. Subsequent integration with civil radar and other networks shall provide an integrated Air Situation Picture, and reportedly acts as a force multiplier for intelligence analysis, mission control, and support activities like maintenance and logistics. The design features multiple layers of security measures, including encryption and intrusion prevention technologies, to hinder and deter espionage efforts.

Media

In the year 2005, the National Geographic Channel created a 10 part documentary series detailing out all the branches of the Indian Air Force. It was titled ''Mission Udaan - Inside the Indian Air Force''. In partnership with ''Threye'', a Delhi based game developer, The IAF launched Guardians of the Skies, a roleplaying combat game for mobile devices in 2014. The IAF would later also create a successor, titled Indian Air Force: A Cut Above, in 2019.

References

Bibliography

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External links

* {{Authority control Indian Air Force, Defence agencies of India Military units and formations established in 1932 1931 establishments in India Military history of India during World War II