IAF displays fire prowess at ‘Vayu Shakti’, 1st full-scale demo in 5 years

Ajay Banerjee

Pokhran, February 17

For the first time in five years, the Indian Air Force (IAF) today conducted its full-scale firepower demonstration ‘Vayu Shakti’ at Pokhran, Rajasthan.

Over 50 tonnes of ordnance was dropped in a span of two hours — beginning in the daylight and lasting till night — showcasing 24×7 abilities.

The last ‘Vayu Shakti’ was conducted on February 16, 2019, just two days after the Pulwama terror attack. Ten days later, the IAF had launched the Balakot air strikes.

Since the Balakot airstrikes, the IAF has added Rafale fighter jets, a new air defence system ‘Samar’, and three different types of helicopters — Chinook, Apache and Light Combat Helicopter in its fleet. All these showcased their abilities along with the pre-2019 equipment.

Keeping with this year’s theme ‘Lightning Strike from the Sky’, over 120 aircraft displayed their abilities. These included fighter jets Sukhoi 30 MKI, MiG 29, Jaguar, Mirage, Tejas and Hawk. Special operations planes C130J and the C17 and helicopter like Mi17 and ALH were also part of the demonstration.

A Rafale fighter jet fired the MICA air-to-air missile at a flying target to mimic a dog fight with an enemy aircraft. The last time pilots of India and Pakistan engaged in dog fight was on February 27, 2019. India lost a MiG 21 jet and shot down a Pakistani F16.

The Apache attack copter fired the Hellfire anti-tank missile that can hit targets 10 km away.

Heavy-lift copter Chinook showed its ability to transport two M777 artillery guns by carrying them in an underslung mode. The Chinooks have played a major role in deploying troops and equipment during the crisis along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh.

The LCH carried out a night-time attack on an “enemy” location and hit with precision.

Keeping up with the technological advancements in combat domain and the lessons learnt from recent conflicts, the lAF also displayed a long-range unmanned drone that destroyed a simulated enemy radar site with pinpoint accuracy.

IAF’s Garud Commando Force demonstrated prowess in anti-terror/insurgency operations aimed at clearing hideouts of inimical elements. Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan was the chief guest to the occasion.