5th generation fighter F-35's debut at Aero India takes US ties to new heights
- Bengaluru: US Air Force's ne- west fifth-generation fighters- the stealthy supersonic, multi- role F-35A Lightning II and F-35A Joint Strike Fighter-debuted at Aero India 2023 on Monday, with a swift flypast before landing.
- The showcasing of the ultramodern jets assumes strategic importance against the backdrop of growing ties bet- ween India and the US and the geopolitics in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. TOI had reported in its February edition that the US was likely to spring a surprise by bringing the F-35.
- The F-35A Joint Strike Fighter came from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and F-35A Lightning II from Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.
- Major General Julian C Cheater, assistant deputy un- der secretary of the US Air Force (international affairs), said: "The F-35 represents the lea- ding edge of US fighter technology. Aero India is the ideal forum to showcase the most advanced, capable, lethal and interoperable weapons systems the US has to offer: This system and others are designed to penetrate and defeat advanced adversary air defences."
- While Rear Admiral MichaelL Baker, defense attaché to India, said the F-35 presence at the air show was meant to demonstrate the strength and closeness of the India-US partnership and not because the- re's a possibility of acquisition, the timing of the fighter jets' debut can't be overlooked.
- With India's joint development project for a fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) shelved, the nation has shifted focus to the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (Amca) - a fifth-generation twin-fin, twin- engine stealth aircraft being developed by Bengaluru-based Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
- In 2019, the IAF had announced at Aero India that its first preference for a fifth-generation fighter plane would be the indigenous Amca. However, with Amca still under development and a changing threat perception, especially in the northern sector, Indian armed forces are looking at swift modernization.
- So far, India has not officially sought the F-35 from the US. As Cheater put it: "...There has been no ask or high-level discussion. From what I can tell, India is focused on building its own future fighters..."
- While the F-35 took Centre stage at the air show, the familiar big birds made their mark, too. The first flying display was dominated by fighter jets - Tejas, Su-30 with Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari flying the Tejas in the Gurukul formation. However, it was the Surya Kiran Ae robotic Team (SKAT) that garnered the most applause.