Republic Day 2024: Meet IAF’s Fighters & Their Jets Before They Soar Over Kartavya Path

New Delhi: On January 26, during India’s 75th Republic Day, Indian Air Force (IAF) will display its air power, featuring a lineup of its most formidable fixed-wing fighter aircraft during Republic Day Pare.

HAL Tejas and its Captain 

Among m will be homegrown HAL Tejas, an Indian-designed single-engine, delta-wing, light multirole fighter collaboratively developed by Aeronautical Development Agency and Aircraft Research and Design Centre of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. No. 18 Squron, under command of Group Captain Dinesh Dhanakar, will present Tejas.

IAF's Baaz & its Jabaaz(S)

upgred variant of Soviet double-engined fighter jet, MiG-29 UPG, caused nightmares for Pakistani F-16s back in Kargil and has since remained a formidable part of Indian Air Force (IAF). This year, Group Captain Manoj Bhargav, commanding officer of IAF's 47 Squron, will le three MiG-29s in Baaz formation, taking flight at approximately 800 km/h. Flight Lieutenant Punia Nanjapa will also be flying Fulcrum this Republic Day.

Omnirole Rafales and its Pilot

Rafale, latest dition to IAF, a twin-engine fighter, has rapidly become a cornerstone of air force's strength. Led by Group Captain Nagendra Abhisekh, Amrit Formation team demonstrated Rafale's cutting-edge capabilities. Rafale might even fly with some Jaguars at its side.

Formidable Su-30MKI

Undoubtedly forming backbone of IAF, Su-30 MKI, an air superiority fighter, showcased its proven capabilities. Flight Lieutenant Arti Tomar, representing world's largest democracy, flew Su-30 MKI alongside Group Captain Sachin Arora, leer of 220 Squron, in Trishul formation.

This diverse fleet of fighter aircraft will underline IAF's commitment to maintaining air supremacy.