Exercise Pitch Black (Space & Defence Sectors)
Exercise Pitch Black (Space & Defence Sectors)
Why In News:
Indian Air Force (IAF) is set to participate in Exercise Pitch Black, the multinational air combat exercise hosted by Australia.
What is Exercise Pitch Black?
Type: Biennial multinational air combat exercise.
Host: Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).
Venue: Northern Territory, Australia.
First held: 1981; held every two years
Purpose: Tests coalition air warfare capabilities including air superiority, close air support, air interdiction, air defence, and combat search-and-rescue (CSAR).
Regular participants: Australia, USA, UK, France, Germany, Singapore, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, and others.
India's Participation
IAF has previously participated in 2018, 2022, and 2024 editions, indicating growing regularity of India's engagement with the Five Eyes countries and Quad partners.
India typically deploys Su-30 MKI multirole fighters; participation tests IAF's ability to operate in coalition warfare environments and improves interoperability.
India's Major Air Force Exercises
Ex Desert Knight: India-France-UAE trilateral air exercise.
Ex Indradhanush: India-UK bilateral air exercise.
Ex Garuda: India-France bilateral (held in France).
Ex Cope India: India-USA bilateral air exercise.
Ex Shakti: India-France bilateral army exercise.
Key Facts for Prelims
India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2020): The bilateral relationship was upgraded; includes a Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) signed in 2020 allowing each other's military to use their facilities for logistics.
The Five Eyes (FVEY): It is a highly influential intelligence-sharing alliance comprising five countries: the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The alliance focuses primarily on signals intelligence (SIGINT) sharing and cooperation.
Quad Defence Cooperation: The Quad (India, USA, Japan, Australia) has been expanding from a civilian cooperation framework to include defence logistics, intelligence sharing, and joint exercises among member militaries.