NEW DELHI: Air Marshal A P Singh will take over as the next IAF chief from Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari on Sept 30, at a time when the force desperately requires much faster induction of indigenous Tejas fighters as well as force-multipliers amid the continuing military confrontation with China.
The govt on Saturday went by the seniority principle in appointing Air Marshal Singh (59), a fighter pilot who has notched over 5,000 hours of flying on a variety of aircraft after being commissioned in Dec 1984, to the top post.
A qualified flying instructor and experimental test pilot, he held important command, staff and foreign appointments, including as the Central Air Command chief at Prayagraj, before becoming the IAF vice-chief in Feb last year.
As a top-notch aviator who earlier conducted extensive flight testing of the Tejas light combat aircraft, Air Marshal Singh knows fully well that the single-engine fighters are critical for IAF to make up its fast-depleting numbers.
Down to just 30 fighter squadrons when at least 42 are “authorised” to tackle China and Pakistan, IAF plans to progressively induct almost 300 Tejas Mark-1A and Mark-2 jets over the next 10-15 years. Hindustan Aeronautics ’ slow production rate, however, remains a major concern.
China, which has more than four times the number of fighters and bombers, has meanwhile systematically worked to offset its air combat disadvantage due to high-altitude constraints along the frontier since the multiple troop incursions into eastern Ladakh in April-May 2020.
The Chinese air force has deployed additional fighters, bombers, reconnaissance aircraft and drones at all its air-bases facing India, like like Hotan, Kashgar, Gargunsa, Shigatse, Bangda, Nyingchi and Hoping, after upgrading them with new runways, hardened shelters, fuel and ammunition storage facilities.
Air Marshal Singh will also have to push hard for induction of more force-multipliers into his force. For one, IAF is making do with just six IL-78 mid-air refuelers, which are crucial to enhance the operational range of fighters.
For another, IAF is lagging far behind even Pakistan in the “eyes in the sky” arena. It has just three indigenous `Netra’ airborne early-warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, apart from the three Israeli Phalcon AWACS inducted in 2009-2011. The new chief should ensure DRDO delivers in time the plan to develop six Mark-1A and six Mark-2 versions of the Netra aircraft .
On the Tejas front, IAF currently has only 36 Mark-1 variants, with four trainers yet to be delivered. The induction of 83 `improved’ Tejas Mark-1A jets, contracted from HAL under the Rs 46,898 crore deal in Feb 2021, in the 2024-2028 timeframe has also been delayed.
Another 97 Tejas Mark-1A fighters are also to be soon ordered for around Rs 67,000 crore. IAF also plans to induct six squadrons (108 jets) of Tejas Mark-2, with a longer combat range and greater weapon-carrying capacity. The PM-led cabinet committee on security in Aug 2022 cleared the over Rs 9,000 crore development of this fighter with the more powerful GE-F414 engines.
Apart from the major upgrade of the Sukhoi-30MKI fighters, Air Marshal Singh will also have to ensure India’s plan to develop its own fifth-generation stealth fighter, the swing-role advanced medium combat aircraft (AMCA), remains on track and fructifies in the years ahead.
The govt on Saturday went by the seniority principle in appointing Air Marshal Singh (59), a fighter pilot who has notched over 5,000 hours of flying on a variety of aircraft after being commissioned in Dec 1984, to the top post.
A qualified flying instructor and experimental test pilot, he held important command, staff and foreign appointments, including as the Central Air Command chief at Prayagraj, before becoming the IAF vice-chief in Feb last year.
As a top-notch aviator who earlier conducted extensive flight testing of the Tejas light combat aircraft, Air Marshal Singh knows fully well that the single-engine fighters are critical for IAF to make up its fast-depleting numbers.
Down to just 30 fighter squadrons when at least 42 are “authorised” to tackle China and Pakistan, IAF plans to progressively induct almost 300 Tejas Mark-1A and Mark-2 jets over the next 10-15 years. Hindustan Aeronautics ’ slow production rate, however, remains a major concern.
China, which has more than four times the number of fighters and bombers, has meanwhile systematically worked to offset its air combat disadvantage due to high-altitude constraints along the frontier since the multiple troop incursions into eastern Ladakh in April-May 2020.
The Chinese air force has deployed additional fighters, bombers, reconnaissance aircraft and drones at all its air-bases facing India, like like Hotan, Kashgar, Gargunsa, Shigatse, Bangda, Nyingchi and Hoping, after upgrading them with new runways, hardened shelters, fuel and ammunition storage facilities.
Air Marshal Singh will also have to push hard for induction of more force-multipliers into his force. For one, IAF is making do with just six IL-78 mid-air refuelers, which are crucial to enhance the operational range of fighters.
For another, IAF is lagging far behind even Pakistan in the “eyes in the sky” arena. It has just three indigenous `Netra’ airborne early-warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, apart from the three Israeli Phalcon AWACS inducted in 2009-2011. The new chief should ensure DRDO delivers in time the plan to develop six Mark-1A and six Mark-2 versions of the Netra aircraft .
On the Tejas front, IAF currently has only 36 Mark-1 variants, with four trainers yet to be delivered. The induction of 83 `improved’ Tejas Mark-1A jets, contracted from HAL under the Rs 46,898 crore deal in Feb 2021, in the 2024-2028 timeframe has also been delayed.
Another 97 Tejas Mark-1A fighters are also to be soon ordered for around Rs 67,000 crore. IAF also plans to induct six squadrons (108 jets) of Tejas Mark-2, with a longer combat range and greater weapon-carrying capacity. The PM-led cabinet committee on security in Aug 2022 cleared the over Rs 9,000 crore development of this fighter with the more powerful GE-F414 engines.
Apart from the major upgrade of the Sukhoi-30MKI fighters, Air Marshal Singh will also have to ensure India’s plan to develop its own fifth-generation stealth fighter, the swing-role advanced medium combat aircraft (AMCA), remains on track and fructifies in the years ahead.
