India sets up high-level committee to address Air Force's historic shortage of aircraft: Report

The Indian government has set up a high-level committee to address the historic shortage of aircraft in the Indian Air Force (IAF), according to a report.

Earlier this year, it came to light that the IAF's fleet has depleted to an all-time low . Against the sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons, the IAF only has 31 squadrons at the moment. The effectively strength is, however, even lower at 29 as two of the MiG-21 squadrons are functioning minimally to preserve the ageing aircraft. These aircraft have long reached the end of their live but their phasing-out has been delayed owing to the shortage of aircraft in the IAF.

Amid such a situation, the Narendra Modi government has set up a high-level committee headed by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh to figure out a roadmap to address the crisis, according to The Economic Times.

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For more than a decade, multiple procurement and induction programmes of the IAF have been stalled. The induction of Tejas aircraft is essentially on pause because of delay of supply of US-made engines and the procurement of 114 new 4.5-generation fighters has long been pending.

The ET has reported that the committee headed by Singh is expected to submit the report by the end of January 2025.

Beside Singh, the newspaper reported that the committee includes Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) chief Samir V Kamat, Secretary (Defence Production) Sanjeev Kumar, and IAF deputy chief Air Marshal Tejinder Singh, among others.

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For a long time, the Indian national security establishment has been concerned about the possibility of a two-front conflict where India may have to face the combined forces of Pakistan and China at the same time. As these two adversaries have continued to deepen ties, it is imperative to India to adapt the possibility of a two-front conflict into defence planning. The poor state of the IAF, however, severely compromises the ability to deal with a two-front conflict.

Following the setting up of the committee, a source told the newspaper that “some jets will be directly acquired while the bulk will be produced in India”.

As for the long-delayed supplies of Tejas engines, the US major GE has said the supplies would start in March 2025 — two years behind schedule.

The crisis is not just limited to the shortage of warplanes but also transport and other tactical assets.

Against the required number of 18, the IAF has just six mid-air refueler aircraft, according to the newspaper.

When it comes to airborne early-warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, the IAF just has six aircraft which is fewer than even Pakistan, as per the newspaper.

The IAF envisions to have at least 12 more AEW&C aircraft.