During these seven decades, the IAF has lost 2,374 aircraft to crashes. They include 1,126 fighters and 1,248 non-combat aircraft. In addition, 229 trainers and 196 helicopters have crashed. These crashes have resulted in the deaths of 1,305 skilled pilots, note Ajai Shukla and Devesh Kapur.
The sixth batch of three more Rafale fighter jets took off from France for India on Wednesday, the Indian embassy in France said.
Protecting India's sovereignty and integrity will be ensured at any cost, Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari said on Thursday after taking charge as the chief of the Indian Air Force.
Dhanoa also hoped that the matter will be laid to rest saying that raking up such issues to get political gains, putting the interest of armed forces behind is not right.
So far, 14 Rafale jets are operating in the IAF and the number will go up to 18 after the arrival of the new batch.
The Indian Air Force conducted its de-induction ceremony of the MiG-27 aircraft, one of the most prominent fighter jets that have several glorious records to its name. The ceremony took place at the Air Force Station, Jodhpur. The jet has earned the moniker 'Bahadur' from IAF pilots for the lethal role it had played during the 1999 Kargil War.
Meet these Inspiring Lady Soldiers who made history this year.
The two-day mega exercise is involving almost all its frontline fighter jets and other assets deployed in the region, people familiar with the drill said.
The Chinese military has been behaving aggressively over issues in the Yangtse in the vicinity of the Holydip and Parikrama area on the LAC where the Chinese side has been opposing Indian positions.
Codenamed Red Flag Alaska 16-1, the exercises are being conducted in the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, the largest instrumented air, ground and electronic combat training range in the world at more than 65,000 square miles.
In another feat, Lt Jamyang Tsewang, the first commissioned naval officer from Ladakh, also successfully graduated as a qualified helicopter pilot, according to the Indian Navy.
The pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a brief statement.
The biennial tri-services exercise, Bright-Star, is taking place at Cairo (West) Air Base and it is being participated by militaries of the US, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Qatar besides of the host country and India, officials said.
The Indian Air Force carried out a long-range precision strike against a practice target to mark the second anniversary of the Balakot Operations.
Kanth joined the fighter squadron in November 2017 and flew the first solo on MiG-21 Bison in March 2018. She is currently posted at a fighter base in the western sector.
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla Shukla says Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma -- the first Indian to travel to space --has been advising him about the space flight.
The swing-wing fighter has been the backbone of ground-attack fleet of the Air Force for several decades
Afrid Afroz, 21, who was adjudged best cadet at the NDA's 144th course, will join the Indian Air Force and hopes to be a fighter pilot.
With the arrival of the three jets, the size of the Rafale fleet has increased to 14.
The Tejas has flown an unprecedented 450 test flights this year towards a splashy ceremony in Bangalore scheduled for December 20, where Defence Minister AK Antony will preside over its induction into the Indian Air Force, says Ajai Shukla.
The Russian origin aircraft, now capable of effecting mid-air refuelling, is compatible with latest missiles and can launch multi-dimensional attacks.
The report came a day after the Indian Army announced that it launched "punitive fire assaults" on Pak posts.
The comments came a day after Indian Air Force Chief Arup Raha said the air force has moved a proposal for inducting women as fighter aircraft pilots.
According to official figures, 14 squadrons of the MiG 21, MiG 27 and MiG 29 are due for retirement in the next 10 years which will bring down the fighter squadron strength to 19 by 2027 from the current 33.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has asked the Indian Air Force to focus on safety and conservation of available resources as he interacted with top commanders in New Delhi just days after India decided to buy 36 Rafale jets.
The commanders are also expected to specifically deliberate on deployment of first batch of around six Rafale fighter jets which are expected to join the IAF's fighter fleet later this month, they said.
Four IAF personnel, including a squadron leader, were killed and 22 injured on January 25, 1990, at Rawalpora on the outskirts of Srinagar.
Everybody talks of China as the real threat, but we aren't even building a decisive capability against Pakistan, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
In the early part of the Kargil operations, the army opted to more or less go it alone, sacrificing large numbers of men and officers in almost superhuman struggles against an enemy on higher ground. Some generals seem to think their predecessors would have succeeded better if they had had air resources at their disposal, points out David Devadas.
The planes would now officially be inducted on October 8 into the IAF when Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visits France but the planes would start arriving in India only in May 2020 after validation of the India Specific Enhancements and training of pilots and personnel.
The first generation IAF officer from Haryana will assist President Droupadi Murmu as the supreme commander of India's armed forces unfurls the Tiranga on Republic Day.
The pilot made all efforts to avert human casualties and crash-landed the plane on the outskirts of a village, Prakash said.
The HAL and GE from the US would be producing these engines jointly in a facility in India.
Taking to Twitter, Tendulkar thanked the Indian soldiers for their services.
'Not a single bullet was fired, but we were warning the enemy not to continue with their antics!' IAF Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe finds out how the Light Combat Helicopter, which will be inducted into the IAF on October 3, was designed, developed and flown.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on Wednesday handed over the first LCA Tejas twin-seater aircraft to the Indian Air Force.
A galaxy of dignitaries including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, his French counterpart Florence Parly, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria and Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar will attend the ceremony.
An IAF spokesperson said the MiG-29 aircraft was on a training mission. "The aircraft had developed a technical snag and the pilot ejected safely as he was unable to control the aircraft," he said.
After 10 seasons, KBC is just as interesting as it was when it started, feels Namrata Thakker.
The missile earlier had the capability of hitting targets at around 300 km after being released from a Su-30MKI combat aircraft.
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