Category Archives: Indian Air Force

A Disruptive Nuclear China and India’s Imperatives

Posted on April 7, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Published as “In a Nuclear Imbroglio, a Disruptive China and India’s Imperatives are Stark Realities” in Global Dialogue Review , Volume 5, Number 1, January/February/March 2017 ————— The United States policies and nuclear security literature have been the model and set … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Central Asia, China, China military, Culture, Decision-making, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, indian policy -- Israel, Iran and West Asia, Iran and West Asia, Japan, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, nonproliferation, North Korea, Northeast Asia, nuclear industry, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Pakistan nuclear forces, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, SAARC, society, South Asia, South East Asia, Strategic Forces Command, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Tibet, United States, US., Vietnam, Weapons, West Asia, Western militaries | 32 Comments

India Doesn’t Require F-16s When it Has Tejas

Posted on April 1, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Tejas at Hindon AFB, Ghaziabad, October 8, 2016) PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi’s visit to the US to meet President Donald J Trump is now on the front burner, with an emphasis on ‘deliverables’. If Delhi is keen on easing the … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, China, China military, civil-military relations, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian ecobomic situation, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Russia, russian assistance, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons, Western militaries | 37 Comments

Nuclear false alarm

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Agni-5 launch) The latest edition of the Carnegie Nuclear Policy Conference in Washington that just ended featured American and foreign nuclear specialists chasing, as usual, the elusive nuclear catastrophe they are convinced is round the corner. There was also the … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, Decision-making, disarmament, domestic politics, Great Power imperatives, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian democracy, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Indian Politics, MEA/foreign policy, Military/military advice, Missiles, nonproliferation, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Pakistan nuclear forces, SAARC, society, South Asia, Strategic Forces Command, Weapons | 16 Comments

Why Parrikar failed in Defence

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Parrikar with PM) Few Defence Ministers began their tenure with such high expectations and ended it on such low key with almost nothing to show for the two-odd years spent as the military’s boss, as Manohar Parrikar. Returning to Goa … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, corruption, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian democracy, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Indian Politics, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, society, South Asia, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons | 14 Comments

More Disruption Please

Posted on March 17, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Now let there be a course correction in defence and international relations THE RULING BHARATIYA Janata Party’s success in the recent state elections, crowned by the stunning results in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, has stamped Narendra Modi as a political … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, China, China military, corruption, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, indian policy -- Israel, Indian Politics, Israel, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, North Korea, NRIs, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, SAARC, society, South Asia, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, Terrorism, UN, United States, US., Weapons | 12 Comments

Tejas & the single-engined fighter aircraft debate

Posted on March 5, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Perhaps, of interest: A video debate on the merits of sticking with Tejas vis a vis producing the Swedish Gripen E or the American F-16 Blk 70, featuring RK Tyagi, former Chairman, HAL, AVM Kapil Kak (Retd), R Rajagopalan ORF, … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, Decision-making, Defence Industry, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Pakistan, South Asia, South East Asia, United States, US., West Asia, Western militaries | 13 Comments

Counter China on Tawang solution, and rid Maldives of Abdulla Yameen

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

It is not surprising that in the wake of the Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar’s most recent visit to China, Beijing has hinted at its solution of choice to resolve the border dispute. India, this solution goes, can have the rest … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Central Asia, China, China military, Cyber & Space, Decision-making, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, guerilla warfare, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Maldives, MEA/foreign policy, Military/military advice, Pakistan, Pakistan military, SAARC, society, South Asia, Special Forces, Terrorism, Tibet | 17 Comments

Trump drives a stake through the Indian tech-settlers’ mindset and Modi’s

Posted on March 1, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Just returned from an extended session this morning on News X TV channel covering Donald Trump’s 1st State of the Union address to the US Congress. Firstly, not sure why the Indian media is stuck on covering purely internal American … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, China military, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Politics, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, NRIs, society, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, United States, US., Weapons | 22 Comments

Mystery behind repeated C-130 mishaps cleared

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

February 21st saw a C-130J Super Hercules while taxi-ing for a night sortie at the Thoisie ALG in Ladakh instead of taking-off, run smack into a solid structure, nearly shearing off part of a wing and an outer turboprop engine … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Russia, russian assistance, South Asia, Special Forces, Strategic Relations with the US & West, United States, US., Weapons, Western militaries | 36 Comments

The Tragedy of Tejas

Posted on February 17, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

The Government doesn’t see that the commercial bonanza for foreign countries is choking off funds for home-grown aircraft ——-DEPENDING ON WHAT’S involved, legacy can be a good thing or a bad thing. In the case of the Indian state, bureaucracy, … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, corruption, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Indian Politics, Israel, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, SAARC, society, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons, West Asia, Western militaries | 27 Comments