Indian Army, Air Force to showcase military might

New Delhi: Media reports have emerged suggesting that India may be all set to launch a massive combined Army-Air Force exercise in March this year, intended to showcase its flexibility and reach as a military power before an international audience.

Reports have quoted defence ministry sources as saying that around 150 foreign military observers, including defence attaches based in New Delhi, may be invited for the exercise, which may have been dubbed "Brazen Chariots."

The exercise is due to be held in the deserts of Rajasthan in the third week of March. The Pokhran field firing ranges in Rajasthan traditionally serve both the Indian Army and the Air Force for firepower demonstration purposes.

According to reports, the exercise will be the largest in recent times, with the entire gamut of sophisticated weapon systems and platforms, reconnaissance and command and control systems coming into play. The message to be imparted to observers is the capability of the Indian Armed Forces in the context of modern warfare.

Reports say that the Army's southern and the IAF's south-western command will join hands to demonstrate and practise "synergised air-land operations in a mechanised and digitised environment', with the basic focus being on launching "swift offensive multiple-thrusts" to strike deep behind enemy lines.

The Army and IAF are expected to field the entire range of weaponry in their inventories, ranging from T-90S main-battle tanks and Smerch multiple-launch rocket systems to advanced Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets and Heron UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles).