Rajasthan: In a first, Vice Chiefs of all armed forces fly in LCA Tejas in Jodhpur

The Vice Chiefs of all three armed forces flew in the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, for the first time during a multilateral exercise here on Monday, an official statement said. Jodhpur Air Force Station is hosting the second phase of the multilateral exercise "Tarang Shakti" from August 29 to September 15.

Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal A.P. Singh, Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, and Vice Chief of Army Lieutenant General N.S. Raja Subramani arrived at Jodhpur Airbase and boarded the Tejas fighter jets for the flight.

During the event, Air Marshal A.P. Singh of the Air Force flew the single-seater LCA Tejas fighter jet, while the Navy and Army Vice Chiefs flew in the twin-seater trainer version of the LCA.


Air Force of eight nations including India are participating with their assets and 16 other nations are witnessing the exercise as observer countries.

According to the defence spokesperson Col Amitabh Sharma, this exercise, which is the largest multinational exercise hosted by IAF, aims at strengthening interoperability between the participating forces.

A defence expo will also be organised from September 12 to 14, wherein India will showcase its indigenously manufactured weapons and aircraft to explore the global potential of defence exports by promoting Indian manufactured assets among friendly nations.