As rescue operations in the landslide-hit areas of this north Kerala district entered fifth day, rescuers unearthed more bodies and body parts, taking the death toll to 215, with around 206 people still reported missing.
Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 11 others were killed when an Indian Air Force helicopter carrying them crashed on Wednesday near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu in apparently foggy conditions, killing 13 people on board, the IAF and other officials said.
The IAF transport aircraft landed in Jamnagar, Gujarat with over 120 people including officials and security personnel from the embassy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday handed over to the armed forces indigenously-developed light combat helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and electronic warfare systems for the warships, in reflection of India's focus to boost its domestic defence industry.
This upgrade will allow air operations by military and civil aircraft even in poor visibility and adverse weather conditions.
Air Marshal S B Deo was rushed to a military hospital in Delhi where he underwent a surgery and is now stable.
Over 68,000 Army soldiers, around 90 tanks and other weapon systems were airlifted by the Indian Air Force to eastern Ladakh from across the country for rapid deployment along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) after the deadly clashes in the Galwan Valley, top sources in defence and security establishment said.
A special court on Saturday granted bail to four former Indian Air Force (IAF) officers in the AgustaWestland chopper deal corruption case after they appeared before it following summons issued on the last date of hearing.
"As part of regular training and towards increasing cohesion between civil and military functionaries, aircraft operations will take place over the Purvanchal expressway," said Defence PRO.
About 2,000 Indians are living in Iran, a country that has witnessed increasing numbers of coronavirus cases in the last few days. According to latest reports, 237 people have died of the coronavirus infection in Iran while the number of positive cases stands at around 7,000.
Saurav Chordia's morale patches celebrate bravery and glorify events that are significant for different IAF units or squadrons.
The Indian Air Force is on Saturday celebrating 84 years of glorious service during which the force extended its reach to some of the most difficult terrains in the world, signalling its supremacy and operational capabilities.
The IAF has deployed almost all its frontline fighter jets like Sukhoi 30 MKI, Jaguar and Mirage 2000 aircraft in the key frontier air bases in eastern Ladakh and elsewhere along the Line of Actual Control.
The plan was to equip the Su-30 aircraft with more powerful radars and the latest electronic warfare capabilities to make it more powerful as per the latest standards, the sources said.
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.
The Russian-origin An-32 aircraft lost contact on the afternoon of June 3.
Four Rafale fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force carried out a "strategic" mission over the Indian Ocean region for over six hours, in a significant demonstration of their long-range combat capabilities, people familiar with the operation said on Wednesday.
'It is my opinion that not releasing the Balakote Battle Damage Assessment immediately post strike was a phenomenal blunder, perception battle wise,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd), India's former air adviser in Pakistan.
And it's not just the festival Kolkata's beloved tram service is celebrating.
The IAF carried out 33 missions transporting 625 tonnes of treasury consignment after the demonetisation was announced, the ex-IAF chief said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unfurl the national flag from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Sunday to celebrate the country's 75th Independence Day and two Mi-17 1V helicopters of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will shower flower petals at the venue for the first time ever.
Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said that no country in the world is facing the kind of grave threat that India is confronted with.
MiG-21s are one of the oldest aircraft in the Indian Air Force fleet. Most of them are on the verge of being phased out from the inventory of the air force.
'Having been an air warrior myself for three decades, I am sure the IAF has all the info in place to be divulged at the right time,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
A MiG-21 Bison of the IAF, piloted by Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was downed during a dogfight between India and Pakistan sides on February 27 after the Balakot airstrike
Gen Pande was to retire from service on May 31.
On Monday, five Army personnel were killed and five injured when heavily armed terrorists hurled a grenade and opened indiscriminate fire on two army vehicles around 3.30 pm on the Machedi-Kindli-Malhar mountainous road near Badnota village, about 150 km from the district headquarters Kathua.
The forward airbase near the PoK-China border, which from where Pakistan is around 50 kilometres and the strategic Daulat Beg Oldi is around 80 kilometres, the activity of fighter, transport aircraft and helicopters is going on during both day and night.
Over a dozen IAF planes, including Mirage-2000 fighters and Sukhoi 30s, besides 35,000 kg C-130J Super Hercules aircraft, took part in the exercise.
Capable of flying at Mach 2.5 (two-and-a-half times the speed of sound), the F-15EX is the world's fastest fighter aircraft. It carries 13.5 tonnes of weapons load, more than the Rafale or the Sukhoi-30MKI.
Indian Air Force fighter planes will be on standby to keep a close watch on any suspicious activity in the Delhi sky, including UAVs or drones, as the national capital gets ready to host the G20 summit, a senior official from a department engaged in airport operations said.
'Employment of dedicated lightweight special forces aircraft may provide the answer for repeat anti-terror air strikes with surprise elements intact, the cost benefit assured and attrition minimal,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd), India's former air adviser in Pakistan.
A fleet of fixed wing aircraft and choppers have been deployed to locate the missing Antonov AN-32 aircraft, officials said.
The team, popularly known as the ambassadors of the Indian Air Force, has the distinction of being among a handful of 9 aircraft formation aerobatic teams in the world.
The military aircraft landed at the airport, located around 60 km from the India-China border, on Wednesday.
On Thursday, five Rafale fighter jets touched down at Haryana's Ambala after covering a distance of nearly 7,000 km to join the IAF.
Three people were killed after the MiG-21 fighter aircraft crashed into a house in Hanumangarh in Rajasthan shortly after it took off for a routine training sortie from the Air Force Station at Suratgarh.
The Indian Navy, which was earlier looking towards the US for design expertise, technical know-how and operational practices, is now considering the advantages of working with the Royal Navy.
'In the Balakot operation, we had technology on our side, and we could launch precision stand of weapons with great accuracy.'
The Tejas is a fourth generation combat aircraft developed by Aeronautical Development Agency and the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. It is equipped with fly-by-wire flight control system, integrated digital avionics and multimode radar.
