Indian Army, Air Force display prowess in `Operation Desert Strike'
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
New Delhi, Nov 19, IRNA
India-Operation Desert Strike
Indian armed forces Friday conducted large-scale war maneuvres in the Thar Desert baring their newly acquired lethal weapons platforms and systems before Indian Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and observers from 40 countries, including China.
For the first time in 18 years, in `Operation Desert Strike', codename for the war games, the Indian Army and Air Force deployed their latest acquisitions like Russian T-90 tanks, mechanized combat vehicles in tandem with force multipliers like the Israeli Searcher and Heron unmanned aerial vehicles, Air Defence Missile System and other electronic sensors and surveillance systems at Pokhran Field Firing Range in the western Indian state of Rajasthan.
Synergy between air and ground forces marked the corps level exercises with IAF fighters like the Mirage 2000, ground attack Mig-27s, deep penetration Jaguars, upgraded MIG-21 Bisons and attack helicopters immaculately coordinating with their counterparts on ground.
It is for the first time that war games of this intensity were held in the desert after the famous `Operation Brasstacks' in 1987, officials said.
For the first time, top-level officers of the Chinese People's Army witnessed the exercise, Indian Army officials said. Indian Army teams had observed Chinese military exercises earlier.
Over 20,000 personnel participated in the massive exercise.
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