IN HIS first comprehensive articulation on the theaterisation plan, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh said on Sunday that the Indian Air Force is not viewing it as an exercise to permanently divide fighter assets geographically, advocating for a structure built around India’s specific security requirements rather than replicating foreign models. “We are not viewing theaterisation as an exercise to permanently divide fighter assets geographically. The IAF is fully committed to jointness and integration,” he said, outlining the IAF’s vision for the project. In an exclusive interview to PTI, the Air Chief Marshal said the guiding principle for theaterisation should be“centralised control” where necessary and “decentralised execution” where appropriate as he cited ongoing conflicts in various geographies to assert that air power can decisively shape military outcomes. Air Chief Marshal Singh also emphasised that the “transformation of this scale” should be implemented in phases so that operational readiness is “never compromised” and warned against the“trap” of trying to predict the future battlefield with “excessive certainty”.

 

Referring to Operation Sindoor, Air Chief Marshal Singh said it was carried out under a joint architecture established by the Chief of Defence Staff and the three service chiefs where the centralised allocation and swift reallocation of critical assets proved decisive. Announced in 2019 as India’s most ambitious military reform since Independence, the theaterisation plan seeks to integrate the three services for greater operational synergy. The proposed architecture envisaged three integrated commands: a Northern Theatre Command in Lucknow focused on China, a Western Theatre Command in Jaipur to address challenges from Pakistan, and a Maritime Theatre Command in Thiruvananthapuram. However, progress has stalled due to divergent views among the three services over the proposed command structures. The IAF has been cautioning against implementing the plan in a hurry and has strong reservations in splitting its fighter squadrons under the proposed structures. “Recent conflicts around the world have once again underlined how decisively air power can shape military outcomes. That is precisely why the question of how air power is organised matters so much,” the IAF Chief said. Air Chief Marshal Singh noted that the real question is how to employ air power to its greatest effect within an integrated structure, arguing air power’s defining strengths are its speed, reach, flexibility and ability to concentrate combat power rapidly at the point of decision.