Garuda-VI: Indo-French Joint Air Exercise begins

Indian Air Force (IAF) and Armée de l’Air (French Air Force) are participating in Garuda VI, a bilateral air exercise at Mont de Marsan in France.

The last edition of joint exercise between IAF-FAF was held in June 2014 at Air Force Station Jodhpur, Rajasthan. This year is the 6th edition of exercise which is taking place from 1 July to 12 July 2019.

About Garuda VI

Objective: This joint India-France air exercise is aimed at enhancing interoperability level of French and Indian crews in air defence and ground attack missions.

Drill: The exercise will see most potent fighter aircraft of India and France going head-to-head to validate latest defence strategies and fine-tune their waging capabilities.

Aircrafts Participating: It is expected to showcase fighter jets such as Rafale, Sukhoi 30 and Mirage 2000 from two sides.

• IAF contingent comprises of- 120 air-warriors and 4 Sukhoi 30 MKI along with an IL-78 flight refuelling aircraft. Also, IAF’s C-17 Globemaster strategic lift aircraft will provide logistics support to contingent during induction and de-induction phases.
• French Air Force (FAF) units will comprise- Rafale, Mirage 2000, C135, E3F, C130, Casa and Alpha Jet.

Significance: Such joint exercises between two countries increases understanding of interoperability during mutual operations between two air forces as well as provide an opportunity to learn from each other’s best practices.

Month: Current Affairs - July, 2019