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.
Cricket legend and Indian Air Force's Honorary Group Captain Sachin Tendulkar led the sporting fraternity in lauding Tuesday's air strikes that targetted Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists and trainers in Pakistan.
The combat drill was to be prepared for thwarting any misadventure by the Pakistan Air Force to intrude into the Indian air space
'Their (Pakistani) objective was to hit our army places. They could not and that is the bottom line'
The IAF has insisted it hit its targets. If that is indeed true, then the lack of obvious damage could mean it has used a different bomb -- possibly procured secretly from Israel.
'The IAF has flown more than 100 hours in search operations. No effort is being spared to locate the missing aircraft,' the statement added.
The charter of affiliation was signed by General Naravane and Air Commodore Tarun Chaudhry of 17 Squadron.
The IAF faces a 'fighter gap' of 13 squadrons. The IAF would be caught seriously short in a two-front war -- the worst-case planning contingency in which China and Pakistan attack India simultaneously, points out Ajai Shukla.
Boeing is pressing hard to win the Indian Navy contract for 57 aircraft carrier-borne fighters. It could offer the Super Hornet in the ongoing IAF procurement of 114 medium fighters; its upgraded F-15EX fighter also on the list.
After a decade-long wait, the IAF will transform 80 ageing Jaguar fighters into highly capable, multi-role, combat aircraft.
'While fighter pilots must not be sent into combat in inferior aircraft, an obsessive quest for outright combat superiority will leave an air force short of numbers,' says Ajai Shukla.
The jump was accomplished by Chaudhri from a Mi-17 helicopter from an altitude of 8500 feet.
The legendary Russian-origin MiG-21 jets are set to participate for the last time at the annual Air Force Day parade on October 8, with the IAF rolling out the process to phase out the remaining three squadrons of the aircraft.
Economic strangulation, information blackout, computer virus and hypersonic missiles will be the weapons of the future, says Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari.
The defence ministry said 98 per cent of the total procurement worth Rs 2.23 lakh crore will be sourced from the domestic industries.
The IAF chief also said that raising the upper age limit to 23 for induction under the Agnipath scheme for the year 2022 would permit a larger section of youths to enrol under the new model of recruitment.
The frequency of day and night operations by frontline fighter jets is a signal that India will continue to put pressure on China until the status quo ante is restored in all the areas in eastern Ladakh including Pangong Tso, Gogra and Hot Springs, government sources said.
The Trishakti Corps Infantry and Mechanised Infantry Battalion conducted a training exercise for its Anti Tank Guided Missile at a super-high altitude of 17,000 feet in Sikkim on Thursday, April 11, 2024.
Till Sunday, the IAF had received 56,960 applications under the scheme.
He said it is the duty of the Air Force personnel to remain combat worthy and maintain combat systems operational for any contingency at a short notice.
At present, Pakistan has some edge with its fleet of F-16 jets with AMRAAM missile fitted with them, said an official.
An IAF flight carrying Indian student Harjot Singh, who was shot in Ukrainian capital Kyiv a few days ago, landed at the Hindon airbase in New Delhi on Monday evening, officials said.
For India, it is a symbol of will and a successful feat of arms.
'I have only one life and that is enough.'
The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 of the aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.
Here are some of the glimpses from the celebration.
The sources said the second Rafale squadron being raised at the next main operating base at Hasimara in mid-April this year. India is expected to get more Rafale jets from France in the next couple of months.
"The LCA Tejas was deployed by the Indian Air Force on the western front close to the Pakistan border to take care of any possible action by the adversary there," government sources told ANI.
In contrast to the bare-bones price of $115 million for each Rafale fighter, the F-35A cost $94.6 million, reports Ajai Shukla.
HAL's sustained, long-term income will come from the design, development, manufacture, overhaul, and upgrade of a family of helicopters designed for deployment on India's 21,000-foot-high Himalayan frontier with Pakistan and China.
Boeing said the first batch of the Apaches arrived in India and an additional four choppers will be delivered to the IAF next week.
The aircraft landed at Dushanbe in Tajikistan after evacuating the Indians, they said, adding the flight is expected to arrive at the Hindon airbase near Delhi in the evening.
The defence ministry has decided to convert the experimental scheme for induction of women fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force into a permanent one.
The move is seen as a gamechanger in guarding the strategically important Indian Ocean Region.
The NCW has raised strong objections to a woman Air Force officer allegedly being subjected to the "banned and intrusive two-finger test" by Indian Air Force doctors, and asked the air chief marshal to take necessary steps.
Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria's plan includes building 83 Tejas Light Combat Aircraft in quick time to fill the light fighter vacancies left by the retirement of MiG-21 and MiG-27 fighters.
HMI Principal, Group Captain Jai Kishan, said the institute decided to make the quarantine time useful for the air warriors, who came in batches of 10-12 after their return from holidays, as just remaining locked inside rooms could have caused mental stress to them amid the pandemic situation.
'This is a huge step in promoting the 'Make in India' mission as this bio-fuel would be produced from Tree Borne Oils sourced from tribal areas and farmers.'
'Searching for the target with bare eyes was like searching for the needle in the haystack, but due to the technology, we had a clear picture of the seven tents perched against the rocky background on our scopes.'
Over 200 people and two Indian Air Force helicopters were pressed into service to control a wildfire spread over 10 sq km of the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar, officials said on Tuesday.
