Eight friendly foreign countries will participate with air assets in Exercise Tarang Shakti 2026: Australia, Bangladesh, France, Germany, Greece, Sri Lanka, the UAE and the USA.
The exercise runs from September 26 to October 12 at Air Force Station Jodhpur.
A further 32 nations are expected to attend as observers.
The US Air Force’s F-35 will operate from Indian soil for the first time during the exercise.
It is the second edition of the exercise, following the first in Tamil Nadu in 2024.
The exercise will take place at Air Force Station Jodhpur and adjoining air bases.
Eight friendly foreign countries are set to participate with air assets: Australia, Bangladesh, France, Germany, Greece, Sri Lanka, the UAE and the USA.
A further 32 nations are expected to attend as observers.
The major highlight of the exercise will be the US Air Force’s F-35 Lightning II fighter jet.
This will mark the first time the F-35 has operated directly from Indian soil.
The exercise aims to expose participants to planning and execution of multinational joint combat operations in a realistic, contemporary battlespace.
It is designed to help air forces derive tactically viable solutions from joint exercises.
The exercise will cover a wide range of air operations, including counter-air, air defence, force combat, reconnaissance, airlift and air-to-air refuelling.
The first edition of Tarang Shakti was held in 2024, in Tamil Nadu.
The exercise is expected to showcase the growing capabilities of the Indian aerospace industry, according to the IAF Vice Chief.
India’s own Tejas Light Combat Aircraft has featured in earlier editions of the exercise.
Multinational air exercises of this kind are used by participating countries to build interoperability between air forces.
The Indian Air Force is the primary organiser and host of the Tarang Shakti series of exercises.
Observer nations typically send officials to study exercise planning and execution without deploying their own aircraft.
Indian Air Force Tejas fighter jet at Exercise Tarang Shakti (representative image), Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India
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