POKHRAN: The Indian Air Force on Friday recreated key elements of Operation Sindoor at Pokhran during the Vayu Shakti–2026 exercise, laying out how it carried out strikes and countered aerial threats during last year's hostilities with Pakistan.
President Droupadi Murmu, in her capacity as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, flew a sortie in the indigenous Prachand before witnessing the Fire Power Demonstration (FPD). The sortie was undertaken as a two-aircraft LCH formation, with IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh flying the second helicopter.
With a deafening supersonic boom, a Rafale under the call sign “Brahmastra” opened the FPD, signalling its key role in the IAF’s future force structure after the government’s nod earlier this month for 114 additional aircraft.
The sequence began with ISR inputs from RPAS, which identified and tracked targets in real time, with simulated terror camps and radar installations adding operational realism.
This was followed by simulated suppression and destruction of enemy air defences (SEAD/DEAD), overseen by the IAF’s Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) and executed using loitering munitions.
The integrated air defence grid was demonstrated through coordinated firings by Akash surface-to-air missiles, the Spyder system and upgraded L-70 guns, mirroring the layered approach adopted during the conflict.
The IAF had played a central role in the early hours of May 7, striking two of the nine designated targets and subsequently countering Pakistan’s aerial incursions using a mix of legacy Soviet-origin systems and modern indigenous and imported platforms, including Akash, MR-SAM, Pechora and Osa-AK.
During the hostilities, the S-400 system carried out the longest-range ground-to-air kill in military history, taking down a SAAB 2000 Erieye.
The force inflicted damage on at least 11 Pakistani air bases, after which Islamabad desperately reached out for a ceasefire despite initially declining a call from Indian DGMO Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai on May 7.
The indigenous Tejas MK-1 LCA was missing from the FPD after the entire fleet was grounded following a runway incident earlier this month. Rafale, Su-30MKI, Jaguar, Hawk and Mirage 2000 formed the fighter package, with Rafale and Su-30MKI demonstrating air-to-air engagements.
A C-295 transport aircraft carried out a night assault landing, while a C-130J Super Hercules landed on a short strip, inserted Garud commandos into a simulated combat zone and took off within minutes, as attack helicopters secured the area.
The FPD also, for the first time, featured the SPIKE NLOS missile being fired from a Mi-17 helicopter. Other helicopters included Rudra, Prachand, Chetak, ALH Mk-IV, Chinook and Apache.
Army elements were also part of the display, with M-777 ultra-light howitzers and upgraded L-70 guns showcasing ground-based firepower alongside aerial operations. Sources added that Army air defence units remained on constant watch during the exercise, underlining close coordination between air and ground forces.
Long-range stand-off weapons used during Op Sindoor were not demonstrated due to safety considerations and the presence of foreign observers, with the focus instead on precision targeting and integrated air defence operations.
Around 25 foreign journalists were present to watch the FPD as part of an outreach by the Ministries of External Affairs and Defence to showcase India’s military might and indigenous defence ecosystem. The delegation had also covered the Navy’s International Fleet Review (IFR) and the Army’s integrated exercise Agni Varsha this month.