donald trump india pakistan Tensions Rise
The conflict began after a deadly attack in India-occupied Kashmir's Pahalgam, which Pakistan denied responsibility for, and escalated into heavy fighting between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, with both sides launching airstrikes on each other's airbases, raising questions about Indian errors and the potential involvement of Chinese arms, and highlighting the need for a more effective defense acquisition process and modernization of the IAF's fleet.
The Indian Air Force is facing a crisis due to its aging fleet and weapons procurement issues, which were highlighted during the recent conflict with Pakistan, with several combat aircraft lost and the exact number unknown, a situation that has drawn comment from US President Donald Trump.
The IAF has a sanctioned strength of 42 operational squadrons, but its actual capabilities have shrunk to at best 30 due to India's slow defense acquisition process. The air force is also facing issues with its British-French Jaguar fighter jets, which have crashed during training operations, including a July 9 incident that killed two pilots. The Jaguars were inducted into the IAF in 1979, and India still has not acquired new aircraft to replace them due to cost considerations and other hurdles.
The problems facing the IAF have not escaped comment from senior military officials, including the Chief of the Air Staff, who has expressed frustration with the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for failing to deliver aircraft in a timely fashion. The Tejas program, which originated in the 1980s, has been plagued by delays and technical issues, and the latest Tejas has yet to undergo operational trials. The IAF is also reliant on Soviet-era aircraft, including the MiG-21, which have seen 104 non-combat crashes and the deaths of 104 pilots in the past decade.
The IAF faces an irresolvable conundrum, with demands that will weaken its military edge in the foreseeable future, as it grapples with two implacable adversaries, Pakistan and China, and faces domestic limitations, including a slow defense acquisition process and a dysfunctional weapons procurement process, a situation that has been further complicated by the recent conflict and comments from US President Donald Trump, who claimed that five jets were shot down during the India-Pakistan conflict in May.