Indian Airforce with active assistance from the Army and the State administration played major role in extinguishing Kasauli Forest Fire. Mi-17 V5 using Bambi Bucket were pressed into action on 26th May 2026 to airdrop water over areas affected by fire. The operations was carried out by day and in a first by night using NVGs. Despite inherent risk from fire, challenging terrain, smoke and night operations fire fighting continued till the fire was brought under control saving lives and infrastructure on ground. 93000 litres of water was poured, by multiple shuttles by Mi-17V5 carrying 2000-2500 litres per trip from Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh. @rajnathsingh @DefenceMinIndia @SethSanjayMP @HQ_IDS_India @DefProdnIndia @adgpi @indiannavy @IAF_MCC @CMOFFICEHP @PIB_India

When air defence is discussed, the assumption is often total protection. But that assumption does not hold, especially in India’s context. At the Strategic Renaissance of Air Power Conference, Air Marshal Diptendu Chowdhary pointed to the core challenge: scale. The sheer size of India makes it impossible to build an air defence system that stops every drone or every incoming strike. Even heavily layered systems, like those seen in Israel, have not been impermeable. The lesson? Air defence is not about perfection. It is about resilience under saturation. In modern warfare, some threats will get through. The real question is not can you stop everything, but can you absorb, respond, and continue to fight? #AirDefence #DroneWarfare #MilitaryStrategy #IndiaSecurity #chakranewz @SandeepUnnithan @awasthi_bob @i_DeepakBhadana @SonicLancer

Only 22 people have ever received honorary rank in the IAF. Air Cmde Vijaypat Singhania, who passed away recently, was the 21st awardee. Most of the names on this list are gone. It is a curious roll: royalty, public figures, and a handful with Air Force service. #IAFHistory

Th conference is going to be live streamed on both the days on Youtube. Below are the links!👇🏼 🔗 Day 1: youtube.com/live/Ift6AH7mACA… 🔗 Day 2: youtube.com/live/0Mga8mXkYRw…

The Quest for Atmanirbharta in Defence Takes a Murky Turn? TNIE reports that India is keen to acquire Israel’s Sky Sting air-to-air missile, with a 250-km range. The missile is still under development in Israel. However, it has some outstanding features. A three-pulse solid-fuel rocket motor gives it an end game velocity exceeding Mach 5. Its RF seeker features AI-driven target discrimination and is jam resistant. Perhaps the most outstanding feature of the missile is that, despite its long range, it weighs between 180-200 kg facilitating carriage by a light aircraft such as the Tejas Mk-1A. Notably, the TNIE report alludes to delays in the integration of the Astra Mk-1 air-to-air missile with the Israeli ELM-2052 AESA radar fitted on the Tejas Mk-1A, suggesting that it may be the reason for India's heightened interest in the Sky Sting, which Israel is specifically developing for export to India. Though the Sky Sting will reportedly have outstanding features, they are not features that cannot be embodied into future Astra variants. So, the adaptation of the Israeli missile at this stage makes little sense. It will certainly sideline the Astra project. The acquisition of the Sky Sting is expected to be discussed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel on February 25. The road to Atmanirbharta in defence, it appears, runs through Israel. Or perhaps the current government believes its political safety — particularly from the chokehold of the Trump administration — can only be secured through a visit to Israel.