The Indian Air Force (IAF) is not ready to fight a two-front war with Pakistan and China simultaneously due to depleting strength of its fighter jet squadrons, Vice Chief Air Marshal BS Dhanoa said here on Thursday adding the Government was duly apprised of this situation. At present the force has 32 squadrons as compared to sanctioned strength of 42. Each squadron has 18-20 jets.
“Our numbers are not adequate to fully execute an air campaign in a two-front scenario. Probability of a two front scenario is an appreciation which you need to do. But, are the numbers adequateIJ No. The squadrons are winding down,” Dhanoa said when asked if the IAF has the capability to fight a two-front war if it breaks out tomorrow.
Admitting this fact during a Press conference, he said the IAF has conveyed its concerns to the Government and it is seized of this problem and “the reason why the Government signed the 36 aircraft (Rafale) on is because of urgency that they felt because of the depletion in squadron numbers.”
He also said the IAF needs more multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA)like Rafale adding “there are various avenues that are being explored. There is a requirement for us to buy a MMRCA class aircraft more than the 36 numbers that we have signed. Which platform may come in, that is something between us and the Government. We (both) will have to take a call.”
Dhanoa’s concerns came in the backdrop of IAF squadron strength coming down to 32 in comparison to the sanctioned strength of 42. Moreover, most of the jets of Russian origin are in the last stages of their operational life, like MIG21 and MIG-27s besides Jaguars. As of now 54 Mirage jets of French origin are undergoing mid life upgrade to increase it operational life. There are 260 Soviet-era single-engine MiG-21 and MiG-27 jets in the IAF fleet. The Air Force needs at least 400 additional jets over the next 10 years.
The Government is also exploring getting fighter jets through the ‘Make in India route’. A number of fighter jet manufacturers have approached the Defence Ministry with their plans to set up production plants here.
Deputy Chief of the IAF Air Marshal RKS Bhadauria said a decision on more aircraft will be taken only after the conclusion of the contract for 36 Rafale fighter jets. Asked how many more MMRCA type aircraft is the IAF looking at, Bhadauria said he would not like to go into numbers.
“I am not going into numbers. MMRCA, you are aware of total numbers (126 fighters). We are getting 36 out of that. So there is a leftover there and we will take a rather holistic view of overall numbers,” he said. The IAF officers said the Rafale will significantly enhance the capability of the IAF.
Talking about the low serviceability of the SU-30, Dhanoa said it is an issue. IAF has 150 SU-30 frontline fighter jets of Russian origin and plans to have a fleet of 270 in the next two to three years. However, serviceability ratio of the aircraft is very poor with the figure hovering around 55 per cent. This means that out of 100 aircraft, only around 55 are available at a point of time with the rest being bogged down in service and maintenance.
Dhanoa said the Defence Ministry was monitoring this factor at the highest level and said the IAF is in favour of signing a long term material contract with Russia so as to have a quick turnaround,” he said.