Indian Air Force

The Indian Air Force (IAF; Devanāgarī: भारतीय वायु सेना, Bharatiya Vāyu Senā) is the air arm of the Indian armed forces. Its primary responsibility is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during a conflict. It was officially established on 8 October 1932 as an auxiliary air force of the British Empire and the prefix Royal was added in 1945 in recognition of its services during World War II. After India achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, the Royal Indian Air Force served the Dominion of India, with the prefix being dropped when India became a republic in 1950. Since independence, the IAF has been involved in four wars with neighbouring Pakistan and one with the People's Republic of China. Other major operations undertaken by the IAF include Operation Vijay – the invasion of Goa, Operation Meghdoot, Operation Cactus and Operation Poomalai. Apart from conflicts, the IAF has been an active participant in United Nations peacekeeping missions.

The President of India Pranab Mukherjee serves as the ex-officio Commander-in-Chief of the IAF. The Chief of Air Staff, an Air Chief Marshal (ACM), is a four-star commander and commands the Air Force. There is never more than one serving ACM at any given time in the IAF. One officer Arjan Singh, DFC has been conferred the rank of Marshal of the Air Force, a five-star rank and the officer serves as the ceremonial chief. In its publication the Military Balance 2010, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) estimates that the Indian Air Force has a strength of 127,000 active personnel. However, various reliable sources provided notably divergent estimates of its strength over the years. Flightglobal estimates there to be to 1,370 aircraft in active service during 2012/2013

List of Aircraft of the Indian Air Force

 * Fighters
 * HAL Tejas x 8 (Multirole Fighter) - another 212 fighters are on order
 * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 Bison x 151 (Fighter-Interceptor) - to be phased out by 2019, replacement is the HAL Tejas.
 * Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-27ML x 90 (Ground Attack Aircraft) - to be phased out by 2025
 * Mikoyan MiG-29 "Fulcrum-E" x 72 (Air Superiority Fighter) - The MiG-29M fleet is being upgraded to MiG-29UPG standard.
 * SEPECAT Jaguar x 130 (Ground Attack Aircraft) - undergoing upgrades to prolong service life.
 * Sukhoi Sui-30MKI "Flanker-H" x 170 (Air Superiority Fighter) - another 102 fighters are on order
 * Special Purpose Aircraft
 * Beriev A-50E/I Phalcon x 3 (AWACS Aircraft) - two more on order
 * EMB-145 AEW&CS (AWACS Aircraft) - three currently under development
 * Gulfstream IV SRA-4 x 3 (Reconnaissance Aircraft)
 * Transport Aircraft
 * Antonov An-32 Cline x 109 (Transport Aircraft) - undergoing upgrades to prolong service life
 * Boeing C-17 Globemaster III x 1 (Strategic Airlifter) - nine more on order
 * Dornier Do.228 x 40 (Utility Transport)
 * Hawker-Siddeley HS.748-100 x 59 (Airliner) - to be replaced under a $2.4 billion program
 * IAI Astra x 2 (VIP Transport)
 * Ilyushin Il-78MD Candid x 17 (Strategic Airlifter)
 * Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Super Hercules x 6 (Tactical Transport) - six more on order
 * NAL Saras (Utility Transport) - fifteen on order
 * Trainers
 * BAE Hawk 132 x 65 (Jet Trainer) - sixty more on order
 * HAL HJT-16 Kiran x 81 (Trainer)
 * HAL HJT-36 Sitara (Trainer) - sixteen on order
 * Pilatus PC-7 x 12 (Trainer) - another 209 on order