India Staging Biggest Air Exercise To Prepare For 2-Front War
All Air Bases From Leh To Car Nicobar To Be Activated
Armingindia.com
OCT.29, 2015
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is staging its biggest exercise, codenamed ‘Live Wire’, to test its preparedness to fight a two-front war in case of a simultaneous armed conflict with China and Pakistan.
This exercise, which begins on Oct 31, involves the simultaneous activation of all airbases across the country from Leh in Jammu and Kashmir to Car Nicobar in Andaman and Nicobar Islands for about 15 days.
“The most important part of Exercise Live Wire is to rehearse quick movement of air assets from one theatre to another,” a top IAF officer explained to Arming India.
All combat and airlift assets will be mobilised to validate doctrines and plans to fight on two fronts at the same time. This will be the second edition of Exercise Live Wire after the first one conducted in March-April 2013, and also involves joint manoeuvres with the Army and the Navy.
Airlift and rapid deployment of army formations to distant mountainous frontiers is an important part of the exercise. Use of the recently inducted C-17 Globemaster heavy-lift fleet and the C-130J Hercules special missions aircraft would figure prominently.
“The latest operational concepts and preparedness would be checked out. The aim of the exercise is to validate the full spectrum of our capability in undertaking operations in response to likely future threats and operational contingencies,” a senior IAF officer said, confirming that the two-front scenario for the exercise.
Capability would be tested and military gaps assessed “in as close to the likely real time scenario as possible”.
“Communications, net centric warfare operations and reconnaissance capabilities would be checked out. Joint operations with the Army and Navy would be practised on realistic targets, so as to synergise the operational capability of all three services,” an IAF statement highlighted.
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