INDIA, FRANCE AIR EXERCISE TO KICK OFF IN RAJASTHAN TODAY

NEW DELHI: The air forces of India and France will kick off a five-day joint exercise in Rajasthan on Wednesday with a raft of aircraft, including Rafale fighters jets, Mirage 2000s, Sukhoi30s, mid-air refuellers and airborne warning and control system (AWACS) platforms, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said in a statement on Tuesday, announcing the line-up of aircraft taking part in the wargames.

The exercise, code-named Desert Knight-21, is being held at the Jodhpur air force station.

“As part of Indo-french defence cooperation, the IAF and French Air and Space Force have held six editions of exercises named ‘Garuda’, the latest being in 2019 at Air Force Base Montde-marsan, France,” the IAF said on the eve of the exercise.

The French air force has also flown its A-400M military transport aircraft to Jodhpur for the exercise, they added. The French contingent consists of 175 personnel, the IAF said.

The IAF said the two sides would “put into practice operational experience gained across terrains and spectrums and endeavour to exchange ideas and best practices to enhance interoperability”. “For sure air crews imbibe information from each other’s operating procedures from military exercises between nations but they are more a demonstration of strategic relations than one of tactical learning,” said Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur (retd), additional director general, Centre for Air Power Studies.