'Strike first, strike farthest' mantra for future wars: IAF

New Delhi, April 18

The Indian Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, on Tuesday said the mantra for future wars would need capability of “seeing first” followed by the ability to “strike first” and then “striking the farthest”.

In simpler words, the IAF Chief listed how sensors, unarmed aerial vehicles (UAVs), fighter jets with long-range missile and manned-unmanned teaming of platforms will define the outcome of air power in future wars.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh Memorial Seminar on “Aerospace Power: Pivot to Future Battlespace Operations” organised by the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS) here.

“To see first and see clearly, to reach first and reach the farthest and to strike first and strike with precision will be the mantra for fighting modern wars,” the IAF Chief said.

India’s security concerns necessitate that it puts in place adequate military power with the ability to achieve deterrence, ensure information dominance and provide multiple response options.

“Over the past few decades, the understanding of a military operational environment has significantly transformed into simultaneous, parallel and independent operations across multiple domains. The battle space will be on land, at sea, in air, cyber and space domains,” he noted.

The future battle space will be increasingly complex characterised by dependence on technology, the IAF Chief added.

Balakot op showed air prowess

Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari has said, “Operations such as the one in Balakot (Feb 2019) have demonstrated that given the political will, aerospace power can be effectively used in a ‘no war, no peace’ scenario under a nuclear overhang without escalating the situation into a full-blown conflict.”