Articles By Air Marshal Anil Chopra
The Indian Air Force in a Two-Front War
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 33.2 Apr-Jun 2018 | Date: 18 Feb , 2019
China has been aggressively modernising its Armed Forces with the aim to match the United States (US) for ultimate world dominance. China’s defence budget is nearly four times that of...
India's Nuclear Triad: Meeting the Deterrence Challenge
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Date: 08 Dec , 2018
INS Arihant, part of Indian Navy’s (IN) Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project at Visakhapatnam, and India’s first indigenous nuclear ballistic missile submarine recently became fully...
Surface Air Defence Missile Systems – Potent and Relevant
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.4 Oct-Dec 2017 | Date: 19 Jul , 2018
Air is increasingly the medium for launch of offensive operations as it offers the advantage of inter-continental range, short-notice employment, high speed of delivery, high accuracy of weapons...
IAF Fighter Fleet in Crisis
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 33.1 Jan-Mar 2018 | Date: 10 Jul , 2018
Clearly evident in Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa’s statements was the fact that the threat from both China and Pakistan, including a possible two-front war is real. The emphasis was on the need to...
F-16 Block 70 vs SAAB JAS 39E
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 33.1 Jan-Mar 2018 | Date: 12 Apr , 2018
The Indian Air Force (IAF) continues to be at a near all time low of 33 fighter aircraft squadrons. In fact, it will require around 500 new aircraft by 2030, to compensate for the additional...
The F-35 Programme: Lessons for the Aviation Industry
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.2 Apr-Jun 2017 | Date: 03 Mar , 2018
The F-35 programme was being driven by a very professional team of uniformed and civilian members of the Pentagon. The Indian MoD needs to have such core ability and learn programme management....
LCA Tejas: Still a Long Way
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.4 Oct-Dec 2017 | Date: 01 Dec , 2017
Originally intended to serve as an air superiority aircraft, the LCA Tejas has a secondary ground-attack role. The wing and fin are made of carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer. It is one of the...
Space: The Force Multiplier for Air Power
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.3 Jul-Sep 2017 | Date: 10 Nov , 2017
India needs early warning satellites to monitor ICBM launches and even tactical airspace as an important military asset. Ground/space-based lasers are needed to disable enemy satellites or...
Iron Dome: The Game-Changer
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 30.1 Jan-Mar 2015 | Date: 20 Oct , 2017
The name ‘Iron Dome’ evokes an image of a protective bubble. The Iron Dome is an Israeli ground based, truck towable, short-range, ground-to-air air defence system in operation since 2011....
Artificial Intelligence in Aviation
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.2 Apr-Jun 2017 | Date: 13 Oct , 2017
Aviation is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the world due to safety reasons. Strict regulations have helped the aviation industry provide the safest way of transport per mile...
Indian Air Force: 2025
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 30.4 Oct-Dec 2015 | Date: 05 Oct , 2017
With the Middle East in flames and Pakistan military-terrorist nexus routinely triggering border skirmishes, India is virtually at war. China now has a vibrant aircraft industry and routinely...
Andaman and Nicobar Islands – Strategic Potential Untapped
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 02 Apr , 2017
Post-26/11 Mumbai attacks, which were orchestrated from the sea, India has realised the threat potential from the Indian Ocean. The geographical configuration and the location of the Island chain...
Multiple Origin Fleet: Complexities for the IAF
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.4 Oct-Dec 2016 | Date: 06 Mar , 2017
India has learned the hard way that a unilateral desire for peace cannot bring about peace. A country can enjoy peace only if it can defend peace. The US offer of the most high-end weapon systems...
‘Make In India’ Fighter Aircraft: Strategic Options
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 15 Feb , 2017
Presently, 26 countries operate the F-16. Many will continue to do so for next 15 years or more. The F-16 is truly a global system with a globalised market and supply chain. Most importantly, the...
Airborne Electronic Warfare: Silent Force Multiplier
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.4 Oct-Dec 2016 | Date: 14 Feb , 2017
Evolution of the radio/radar/TV/laser brought in a domain of warfare called the Electronic Warfare (EW). This invisible silent ‘Killer’ was meant to degrade the enemy sensors and weapons....
Sino-Pak Collaboration – Military Aviation
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.3 Jul-Sep 2016 | Date: 08 Nov , 2016
Sino-Pakistan ties create the threat of a potential two-front war. India thus needs to relook at its force structure. The PLAAF is the world’s second largest Air Force, with 2,500-plus...
Fifth Generation Aircraft: Battlefield Air Support Mission
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.3 Jul-Sep 2016 | Date: 08 Oct , 2016
The IAF has enough air assets to support the operationally very important Battlefield Air Support (BAS) mission. In addition to targeting enemy airfields, movement of enemy ground forces,...
Airfield Security: Lessons for the IAF
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.2 Apr-Jun 2016 | Date: 15 Aug , 2016
A typical IAF base is secured during peacetime by DSC personnel manning the peripheral watch towers and the important operational assets augmented with air-warrior guards comprising non-technical...
Aviation: The Future is Unmanned
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.1 Jan-Mar 2016 | Date: 28 Jul , 2016
The Indian Armed Forces operate nearly 150 mid-sized UAVs and many more handheld ones. India needs to push its ‘Make in India’ initiative for UAVs. Mumbai and New Delhi police are on the verge...
Defence Budget 2016: Hits and Misses for the IAF
By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 31.2 Apr-Jun 2016 | Date: 09 Jul , 2016
As a percentage of government expenditure the defence budget is down to 12.6 per cent from 13.9 per cent last year. Interestingly, 15 per cent of Ministry of Defence (MoD) capital budget remained...