The Indian Air Force is planning to induct its first self-destructing combat drones from Israel by next year for enhancing its firepower.
Out of 36 Rafale jets, 30 will be fighter jets and six will be trainers.
Singh is leaving for Paris on a three-day visit, primarily to receive the first of 36 Rafale fighter jets
At least five Palestinians were killed in Israeli air strikes in Gaza on Saturday as the war entered its 47th day following the collapse of a fragile truce, even as Israel's hawkish foreign minister said that the offensive would continue until "Hamas waves the white flag".
Israeli troops backed by tanks and drones on Thursday continued to pound Gaza in its operation against Hamas, defying mounting calls for restraint and a United Nations vote to investigate the deadly offensive that has killed 720 Palestinians and 34 Israelis.
'You know why? Because they know they can't vet them, and they don't want Hamas in their neighbourhood'
The Indian Air Force will now have to wait till March end for Israeli airborne early warning system, whose induction has already been delayed by 16 months. "The Israeli Phalcon airborne early warning and control system (AWACS), which will provide the IAF an eye in the skies to perform surveillance and reconnaissance roles, will arrive in India only by March end," a senior IAF officer told PTI in New Delhi on Friday.
Israel on Tuesday resumed air strikes on Gaza after an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire failed to stop the escalating violence that has killed 192 Palestinians in nine days of fighting as Hamas continued to fire rockets at the Jewish state.
Disciplinary action is being taken against two officers in the shooting down of the chopper.
'If UAV technology is used by the adversary to target VIPs or strategic targets it would be a different ball game altogether,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd).
'The Balakot mission was an act of political signaling that India is willing to raise the price that the Pakistani State has to pay in order to support terrorism.'
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has strongly condemned the collapse of a humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, asking Israel and the Palestinians factions to reach an immediate understanding on a durable truce.
The Indian Air Force prides itself as being the fourth largest in the world. As IAF gets set to enter an era of modernisation, rediff.com gives you a peek inside its hangars.
In rebranding the F-16 into the F-21, Lockheed Martin appears to have accepted what many have warned it for years: That the IAF would never buy a fighter whose very name is associated across India with the Pakistan Air Force which has operated the F-16 since the 1980s.
"The air strikes were a sequel to the constant mortar attacks by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam against the forward defence line of the Army," a statement from the ministry said.
Slain Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto had asked the Pakistan Air Force to be ready for attacking India's nuclear facilities, when reports surfaced in 1990 that United States, Israel and India were planning to strike Pakistan's nuclear establishments.
Israel on Monday pressed on with its heavy bombardment of Gaza and foiled major infiltration attempts by Hamas on the 14th day of the conflict that has killed 558 Palestinians and 27 Israelis, even as the United Nations and the United States called for an "immediate ceasefire".
The The Airports Authority of India is likely to procure two counter-drone systems worth Rs 9.9 crore in 2022-23, according to an official document.
The female soldiers are said to have posed in front of several planes, including the legendary Black Spit flown by late Israeli President Ezer Weizmann.
New Delhi must clearly demonstrate to Beijing that China will pay a price for its relentless strategic undermining of India, says Ajai Shukla.
When the armoured vehicles arrive in this 'kill zone', each PALM 400 picks out its target and fires an armour-penetrating projectile, penetrating it from the top where its armour protection is the least.
The first five months of 2023 have witnessed at least six major events/trends that augur badly for global economic and socio-political prospects, points out Shankar Acharya, former chief economic adviser to the Government of India.
The Rs 5,000 crore deal is for the supply of three Phalcon advanced early warning system aircraft to be mounted on Russian-made IL-76 platform for Indian Air Force.
The Phalcon radars, developed by Israel, would be fitted in Russian-built planes.
Israel on Saturday carried out fresh attacks on southern Gaza Strip amid a hunt for one of its missing soldiers believed to be captured by Hamas, as the new wave of violence has raised the Palestinians toll to 1,650.
The successful test firing of medium range surface-to-air missiles is welcome news for the IAF.
As the weather cleared in the morning, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force and Union Territory administration started a joint evacuation drive and brought back all stranded tourists to Port Blair from Havelock and Neil islands of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago.
The MRSAM is an advanced path-breaking air and missile defence system that provides ultimate protection against a variety of aerial platforms. Defence experts say that it can shoot down enemy aircraft at a range of 50-70 km.
The coming together of the Quad and the Australia-UK-US grouping would be a formidable adversary, moving toward the creation of a 'thousand ship navy' that reins in the PLA navy in the Indo-Pacific.
The mass gathering was organised to celebrate the Lag B'Omer holiday at Mount Meron.
Israel on Sunday extended the humanitarian truce in Gaza for another 24 hours at the request of the United Nations, but Hamas said it would not follow the step without Israeli tanks withdrawing from Gaza strip.
Sweden has reportedly agreed to supply Islamabad its Airborne Early Warning and Control System.
The Tejas Mark 1A outperforms the Sino-Pakistan JF-17 Thunder in avionics and weaponry, but the finance ministry's tax burden makes the Indian LCA costlier and hurts it in the export market.
Israel on Wednesday stepped up its offensive in Gaza, asking 100,000 Palestinians to flee their homes and threatening ground operations, as the death toll in the airstrikes climbed to 208 with tensions escalating following failed Egyptian cease-fire efforts.
'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).
Indian Air Force on Friday raised its first squadron of the home-grown Light Combat Aircraft Tejas with the induction of two aircraft into the force at the Aircraft System Testing Establishment in Bengaluru.
By deeming October 31, Sardar Vallabhai Patel's birthday as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas, the BJP has rightly made amends for the short shrift that the great leader received at the hands of the Congress. By the same token, the BJP cannot be seen as being petty towards Indira, a leader who despite her flaws, did render yeoman service to the nation, says Vivek Gumaste.
The defence ministry is finalising a decision to allow the FGM-148 Javelin missile, built by US companies Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, into a contest to supply the Indian Army with anti-tank guided missiles. This is bad news for Israelis
The first World Cup in the Middle East has been anything but insulated from the troubles of the volatile region, set against a backdrop of anti-government protests in Iran and an upsurge in Israeli-Palestinian violence.
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