In the Air

Gp Capt. A.K. Sachdev (retd)

Cyril Northcote Parkinson, the British naval historian who wrote the famed book ‘Parkinson’s Law’ is attributed with the equally famous words, “Delay is the deadliest form of denial.” The ongoing lack of activity on the procurement of 114 urgently needed Multi Role Fighter Aircraft (MRFA) for the Indian Air Force (IAF) is a matter of concern as these aircraft are critical to the IAF’s dwindling strength, and the delay is tantamount to denial.

The MRFA project (if one can call it that) has been trundling along for almost six years now with no signs of its culminating into an actual fighter being inducted into the IAF’s combat aircraft fleet, despite the pressing need.

The Need

The IAF’s combat strength currently includes two squadrons of Rafale (the last aircraft arrived in December last year), 12 of Su-30 MKI, three each of MiG-21, MiG-29 and Mirage 2000, six of Jaguar and two of Tejas (which are of limited operational capability and lack a trainer); these total up to 31 but some resources put that figure at 30.

Of these, the three MiG-21 squadrons are to be phased out over the next three years, while the Jaguar fleet would be phased out between 2025 and 2032, following the First In, First Out norm. By then, the MiG-29 and Mirage 2000 squadrons, whose induction began in the 1980s, would be finishing their lives and being retired from service, unless of course, the IAF is forced to flog them beyond their useful lives. The MiG 29s and Mirage 2000s would be out of service by 2040. The Jaguars, MiG-29s and Mirage 2000s are already operating on extended lifecycles.

Rafale

Rafale

Thus, it can be seen that the squadron strength is going to reduce further; how much further it falls and when it starts rising again depends on how the shortfall is met over the coming years. The current figure of 31 is far short of 42, the sanctioned strength. The chief of air staff (CAS), Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari is on record as having stated that, “It will be impossible to keep watch and do combat air patrol across the country with the given number of 31 squadrons.” However, it is not just air  of the nation’s territorial extent that the IAF is charged with the responsibility of; the IAF must also meet offensive and defensive tasks associated with a war that might be thrust upon our nation—possibly on two fronts simultaneously.

The CAS is also on record as having said that the IAF requires five to six new squadrons of fourth-and-half generation aircraft to meet its immediate requirements. Can this requirement be met indigenously? In what time frame?

Make In India

The government’s constant and strident refrain about Make in India and Aatmanirbhar is taken as a prompt by every politician, government official, media and so-called strategic analysts to constantly glorify and parrot these two slogans. By itself, that is a laudable and patriotic-sounding war cry. But is it the solution in the context of the IAF’s perilous fighter aircraft shortfall?

The 40 Tejas Mk1s (two squadrons) already inducted into the IAF do not meet its operational requirements as the Mk1 is more of a testbed for the Tejas Mk1A. In June 2021, the IAF ordered 73 Mk1As along with 10 Mk1 trainers (which were not developed along with the Mk1). Of these, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is to deliver the first three aircraft in 2024 and, thereafter, 16 every year for the next five years, thus taking the total to