The Navy along with Army, IAF and Coast Guard are conducting month long exercise Theatre Readiness Operational Exercise (TROPEX) off Western sea board in Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean to test their operational preparedness. The last exercise of this scale was held in 2015. This year’s drill, which started earlier this week, includes aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, nuclear submarine Chakra and landing platform dock Jalashwa besides P-8 I maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
The Naval assets from Western and Eastern Commands are deployed for this exercise apart from IAF’s SU-30s, Jaguars, airborne early warning systems(AWACS) and Il-78 mid air refueling aircraft. Infantry units of the Army also part of this exercise as they will practice beach landing while warships and aircraft give them protection from enemy fire.
Giving some of the salient features of current TROPEX, officials said here on Friday the exercise will be conducted in various phases, both in harbour and at sea encompassing the various facets of war-fighting and combat operations.
TROPEX 17 assumes special significance in the backdrop of the current security scenario. The exercise is aimed at testing combat readiness of the combined fleets of the Indian Navy, and the assets of the IAF, Army and the Coast Guard. It will also strengthen inter-operability and joint operations in a complex environment, they said.