New Delhi. India will host multilateral exercise ‘Tarang Shakti’ in two phases in August and September. The first phase of the exercise will be held in Tamil Nadu’s Sulur from August 6 to 14 where aircraft from Germany, France, Spain and the United Kingdom as well as the Indian Air Force will be seen soaring in the skies. A total of 51 countries have been invited to participate in the Tarang Shakti exercise.
Air Marshal A.P. Singh, Vice-Chief of Air Staff, briefing the media on July 31 said, “The Indian Air Force is all set to host its largest multilateral exercise, ‘Tarang Shakti’, in two phases in August and September. Eighteen countries, 10 of them with air assets, will join the exercise which will see a total of 150 aircraft, both foreign and IAF, soar into the skies over Sulur and Jodhpur. The exercise will be a landmark event and has no particular nation or theme in mind.”
He added, “Invitations have been extended to 51 countries. Ten countries will be participating with assets and 18 as observers with one more country likely to join. The aim is to foster interoperability and share best practices and also to showcase indigenous defence industry.”
Germany, France, Spain and the UK are scheduled to take part in Phase-1 besides the observer countries, while the second phase (September 1 – 14 at Rajasthan’s Jodhpur) will see participation of Australia, Bangladesh, Greece, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and the US. India’s prominent defence partners Russia and Israel will not be participating in the exercise, officials said. Russia conveyed their inability to participate in the exercise at this time, against the backdrop of the continuing war in Ukraine.
According to Vice-Chief, given the diverse participation and to cater to the requirements of friendly foreign countries, the IAF has decided to do it in two phases. Exercise ‘Tarang Shakti’ will also showcase India’s defence prowess and move towards ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in defence. Several countries which are taking part in the multilateral exercise Pitch Black in Australia will join the exercise on their return leg.
“We also aim to strengthen our cultural and diplomatic relations. Cultural exchanges have been planned as is the practice in all multilateral exercises,” Air Marshal Singh said. “The overarching aim is to build mutual trust, explore avenues for interoperability, and also showcase our indigenous industry and prowess.”
Exercise Director Air Vice-Marshal Rajat Mohan said that each phase of the exercise will see participation of 70-80 air assets. The first phase of the exercise will be held from August 6-14 at Sulur, a town located in the Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu, and see participation of 32 foreign aircraft. Similarly, the second phase of the exercise to be held from September 1-14 at Jodhpur will see participation of 27 fighters, two refuelling aircraft, two airborne early warning aircraft, and four C-130 Special Forces aircraft from foreign countries, the second phase Director Air Commodore S K Taliyan said. The IAF will field over 40 aircraft each in both the phases. The Indian Navy will participate in the first phase with its Mig-29K carrier borne fighters.
At Sulur and Jodhpur, a defence industrial exposition is also planned with 68 participants confirmed so far including defence public sector undertakings, private firms, and start-ups. One of the main objectives is to showcase the booming indigenous ecosystem and to show its resolve to Aatmanirbharta, the IAF will field all the indigenous platforms in service in addition frontline platforms such as the Light Combat Aircraft, Advanced Light Helicopter, and Light Combat Helicopter.
In the recent past, the IAF has significantly increased its participation in bilateral and multilateral exercises. Since 2001, the IAF has participated in 91 international air exercises. Of these, 32 exercises were held/hosted by the IAF.
Indian Air Force’s LCA Tejas, Mirage 2000, and Rafale to take part in the mega exercise, officials added. Germany will deploy fighter jets and also a A400M transport aircraft. The A400M aircraft would be showcased to the IAF given that it is also a contender in its Medium Transport Aircraft tender that is under way. Rafale from France, Typhoon from Germany, F-18 from Australia and F-16 from Greece, among others, will participate in the ‘Tarang Shakti’ exercise.
“Our endeavour will be to demonstrate our energy and dynamism during this exercise, learn from each other, learn operating procedures, tactics, strategies. We look forward to the exercise to foster deeper cooperation and understanding among the participating forces,” Air Marshal Singh added.
CDS and air chiefs of several countries are also slated to participate in it. “One day will be dedicated to distinguished visitors in both the phases,” Air Marshal Singh said.
Raksha Anirveda's editorial desk team brings in the collective experience of creative professionals - a fine mix of senior copy editors, writers, proofreaders and designers. Working as a team, they continuously create, manage, and curate content to sustain the magazine's profile and reputation in line with market trends and achieve magazine's goal.
