Air Chief Marshal reviews preparedness at Western Command frontline base

The IAF has been carrying out night time combat air patrols over the eastern Ladakh region in an apparent message to China that it was ready to deal with any eventualities in the mountainous region

Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria on Thursday flew a Mig 21 Bison jet at a frontline airbase in the Western Command, and carried out a comprehensive review of the operational preparedness of the air warriors in the region, officials said.

The Indian Air Force has kept almost all its airbases under the Western Command at a "very high level of readiness" in view of the over three-month border row with China in eastern Ladakh.

The Western Command looks after the aerial defence of the sensitive Ladakh sector as well as various other parts of North India.