Dinakar Peri

Why have the MiG-21 fighter jets been called ‘flying coffins'? Why has the induction of Mk-1A jets been delayed? How many jets does the Indian Air Force intend to induct in the next two decades? Are the engines for India's fifth generation fighter aircraft going to be indigenously developed?

As India bids farewell to its first supersonic fighter jet, the MiG-21's final flight marks both the end of an era and a warning for the future

On 5 November, China commissioned its third aircraft carrier, Fujian, at its home port in Sanya on Hainan Island in the presence of President Xi Jinping. Displacing 80,000 tonnes, the carrier is capable of launching fifth-generation J-35 fighter jets and KJ-600 Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft using the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS). This marks a significant moment in global carrier aviation and shipbuilding.

India needs to balance the inexorable logic of force optimisation with making up for the numbers lost

The induction of INS Aridhaman, which features several technological enhancements, now gives India the third nuclear ballistic missile submarine to ensure continuous at-sea deterrent.

Russia's recent offer to India for joint production of the SU-57 fifth-generation fighter comes amid India's own AMCA project taking some definitive steps forward.

While negotiations for the licensed manufacture of F414 jet engines in India continue, the off-the-shelf procurement cost of some F414 engines for the AMCA prototype has tripled.

Given the uncertainty in the region's escalation ladder, IBGs may be the answer if the need for a quick ground retort were to arise.