India, Russia joint air force exercise from Dec 10 at Jodhpur

A service-specific exercise between the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Russian Federation Aerospace Force (RFSAF) will commence at Air Force Station, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, from December 10 to 21.

The first phase of the joint exercise called 'Ex AVIAINDRA' between IAF and RFSAF was conducted in 2014. EX AVIAINDRA-2018 is the second in the series of bilateral joint exercise, which is planned in two phases between India and Russia. For the exercise, the foreign participant will not bring its air assets.

Both IAF and RFSAF pilots flew RFSAF aircraft during the training exercise held in September this year in Lipetsk, Russia. The exercise focused on anti-terrorist operations in a bi-lateral scenario and enhanced the co-operation and understanding each other's Concept of Operations, said an official statement of the Ministry of Defence.

In addition to flying exercise, a variety of activities were conducted, including formal interactions, discussions, exchange of ideas and friendly sports matches to enhance bonhomie between the two Air Forces.

In India, the RFSAF-IAF pilots will fly the IAF aircraft, which are common to both Air Forces.