Indian Air Force (IAF) Rafale aircraft made nonstop ferries from the Dassault factory at Bordeaux to home base Ambala in India, using in-flight refueling to fly for nearly 8 hours and 45 minutes.

During Exercise Gagan Shakti in 2018, IAF aircraft took off from eastern airbases, struck simulated targets in India’s southern peninsula, and then proceeded to the Andaman Islands, flying 8-10-hour missions. More recently, IAF Rafale and Su-30 MKI flew long air dominance missions in the Bay of Bengal, Northern Indian Ocean, and Arabian Sea.

Unlike long-range bombers and transport aircraft, where there could be a place to walk around or even carry additional aircrew, most fighters are single seats, and the aircrew is confined and strapped onto an ejection seat.

But nowadays, modern fighter cockpits are being designed to take on long-range extended endurance missions. Long flights have their own dynamics. They require a lot of preparation and coordination.

An important aspect is the aircrew’s biomedical issues. The aircrew clothing, including helmets, has to cater to extended periods of physiological and biological fatigue. Aircrew attention and energy levels have to be sustained. Nutrition requirements have to be met. The physiological effects of flying alone for long periods, including over sea and on dark nights, have to be looked at.

Operation El Dorado Canyon – Classic Long Mission

The United States Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps carried out air strikes, code-named Operation “El Dorado Canyon”, against Libya on 15 April 1986. It involved a 13-hour, 9,700 km round-trip route the F-111s would fly to target. This was perhaps the most daring long-range fighter attack mission ever.

The attack mission against Libya had been preceded in October 1985 by an exercise in which 10 x F-111E Aardvarks at RAF Upper Heyford airbase in the UK made a simulated attack mission on 18 October, carrying eight 500-lb practice bombs against a simulated airfield located in Labrador, Canada, south of CFB Goose Bay. The mission was designated Operation Ghost Rider. It was a full rehearsal for a long-range strike against Libya.

Among operational United States tactical aircraft, only the General Dynamics F-111 and the A-6 Intruder then possessed the ability to attack at night with the required precision.

Although the F-111s would be required to fly from distant bases, they were essential to mission success because the eighteen A-6S available aboard USS Coral Sea (CV-43) and USS America (CV-66) could not carry enough bombs to simultaneously inflict the desired damage on the five targets selected.

Twenty-eight McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extenders and Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers took off from bases in the UK around 1900 h on 14 April. These tankers would conduct four silent refuelling operations over the round-trip route the F-111s would fly to target.

Within minutes, the tankers were followed by twenty-four F-111F strike aircraft flying from RAF Lakenheath and five EF-111A Ravens of RAF Upper Heyford. Six F-111s and one EF-111 were designated spares that returned to the base after the first refueling was completed without any system failures among the designated strike aircraft. The raid began in the early hours of 15 April, effectively the aircraft had flown the entire night.

Coordinated jamming by the EF-111s and EA-6B Prowlers began at 0154 hours (Libyan time) as the A-7Es and F/A-18As began launching AGM-88 HARM and AGM-45 Shrike missiles to suppress enemy air defenses (SEAD). The attack began at 0200 hours and lasted about twelve minutes, with 60 tons of munitions dropped. The F-111 bombers used both radar and Pave Tack prior to bomb release to minimize collateral damage.

The total number of aircraft in the raid was 45. 300 bombs and 48 missiles were released/fired. The much longer flight route had to be chosen because both France and Spain refused overhead flight rights. This audacious raid had many lessons for long-range fighter strikes.

IAF’s Recent Long-Range Fighter Missions

End of May 2023, IAF four Rafale jets carried out a strategic long-range mission lasting over six hours, delivering pinpoint precision strikes on targets in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

It was also to demonstrate area domination and area denial capability. The aircraft reportedly took off from their parent base in the Eastern sector. The IAF media release said that the aircraft ‘fought’ their way through a large force engagement en route to their weapon release point and met the planned time on target.

A few days later, in early June, a large formation of IAF’s Su-30MKI jets carried out another strategic mission over the IOR for eight hours. This mission was towards the western seaboard into the Arabian Sea.

“Another outing into the Indian Ocean Region! This time, with IAF Su-30s flying nearly eight hours, on a different axis. Both Seaboards covered,” the IAF tweeted.

The Su-30 MKI took off from an airbase in Gujarat and carried out a simulated attack on targets near the Gulf of Aden. Another mission down south into the northern Indian Ocean was flown by Su-30s from the IAF’s peninsular airbase at Thanjavur.

The IAF’s Su-30s are armed with the 450 km-range BrahMos and some other anti-shipping missiles. Also, IAF Jaguars have a maritime strike role. IAF fighters transiting for major air exercises abroad have been using aerial refueling. IAF Rafale aircraft that participated in Red Flag Alaska a month back made their transatlantic ferry enabled by the IL-78 FRA.

IAF’s Fighter Aircraft with Global Reach

Most IAF fighters can now be refueled in the air. The two fleets with longer ranges are the Su-30 MKI and Rafale. The Su-30 fleet also has the advantage of numbers, and the squadrons are positioned in different parts of India.

These two types also carry larger weapon loads for ground strike and air defense roles, making them better suited for long-range missions. Jaguars could also operate from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to extend their reach to the South China Sea.

Physiological Preparation of Fighter Aircrew

Long missions in relatively cramped fighter cockpits require training and preparation. Physical fitness and adequate sleep prior to flight have to be ensured. Long missions also require more navigational and systems preparation.

There is a need to store easy-to-consume nutrients and drinking water, among others. The crew has to be mentally and physically fit enough to engage in high ‘g’ air combat at the far end of the flight.

They have to be active enough to deliver weapons on target accurately. Deep sea flights, especially in dark night could have orientation issues for pilots. Also sea search and rescue contingencies have to be factored in case of an ejection.

Noise and vibration stress add to fatigue. Some psychoactive drugs improve human performance, increase and lengthen wakefulness, and increase concentration. Some air forces use them under strict aviation specialist supervision. Peeking into the future could mean transdermal patches for the delivery of micronutrient supplements.

Aircraft & Cockpit Technologies Supporting Long Flights

Modern aircraft canopies have an anti-reflective coating.  Ergonomics and human factors concerns are important in the design of modern cockpits. Modern fighter cockpits are being designed to accommodate from the 5th percentile female physical size to the 95th percentile male size.

The layout of the cockpit, especially in the military fast jet, has undergone standardization, both within and between aircraft, manufacturers, and even nations. The layout and function of cockpit display controls are designed to increase pilot situation awareness without causing information or work overload.

The modern cockpits do not anymore have those traditional “knobs and dials.” Instrument panels are now almost wholly replaced by electronic displays, which are themselves often re-configurable to save space. Most traditional controls are replaced by multi-function re-configurable controls or “soft keys.”

Controls are incorporated into the stick and throttle to enable the pilot to maintain a head-up and eyes-out position. These are called “Hands-on Throttle and Stick” or HOTAS. A central concept in the cockpit design is the Design Eye Position or “DEP,” from which point all displays should be comfortably visible.

Cockpits have wide-angle Head-up Displays (HUD), which are further augmented by the Helmet-Mounted Sighting System (HMDS). Helmets with HMDS have weight issues, which could tire the neck during a long mission. Lighter helmets are evolving. In some aircraft, a display could be on the Canopy.

Future systems under experimentation would project information directly onto the wearer’s retina with a low-powered laser called the virtual retinal display (VRD) or retinal scan display (RSD). Terrain following radar and autopilot combinations also ease flying load at low levels. Autopilots are also handy when disoriented.

Direct Voice Input (DVI) would further reduce the workload. Advances in auditory displays allow for Direct Voice Output of aircraft status information and for the spatial localization of warning sounds. Most modern cockpits also include some kind of integrated warning system.

Aircraft have fly-by-wire or fly-by-light digital moving flight controls that relieve the pilot of many flying cores, including preventing flight parameter exceeding. There are also high-definition autopilots. Modern satellite and radio-based navigation, approach, and landing aids also support the pilot. Data links and secure communications with ground stations allow the aircrew to be engaged.

Food & Drink

Fighter pilots may not have the luxury of an air hostess serving a hot meal, but they do not have any major problems taking food and drinks on flights.

The biggest concern is to prevent foreign Object Damage (FOD) from items like crumbs, bottles, bags, etc. Otherwise, there are plenty of places to carry food to eat: your helmet bag, G-Suit pockets, and flight suit pockets.

Typical food usually includes protein bars, chocolate, cereal bars, etc. One must avoid small loose foods like peanuts and M&M’s because they could easily spill and FOD the cockpit. Depending on cockpit altitude, the oxygen mask can be easily removed to either eat or drink. However, since fighter cockpits are only partially pressurized, there are times when cockpit altitude can be as high as 20,000 ft. Sound judgment is required for the duration of removing the mask.

Restroom

Obviously, life on board a fighter jet is cramped. There isn’t a lot of room to move your body, much less use the restroom. Often, one carries a urine collection device, or UCD.

UCDs are also used on spacecraft. A typical UCD consists of a small container with a dehydrated sponge inside, connected to a tube that, in turn, is connected to a funnel-like orifice that is adapted to the user’s anatomy.

It’s a plastic bag with powder in it that reacts to urine. The powder and urine mixture turns into a jelly that helps prevent spillage, and the entire bag rolls down and seals on itself. One has to find a place to store it. A much better option is adult diapers. There are some other devices also.

Strategic Requirements of Long Missions for IAF

Chinese naval vessels have been making more frequent visits to the IOR. China has also leased the ports of Hambantota in Sri Lanka and Gwadar in Pakistan. China has a permanent base and naval presence in Djibouti.

China’s third aircraft carrier is getting ready. The Chinese aircraft carriers have mostly remained within the first Island chain and have yet to go beyond the second Island chain. But their next logical step would be to foray deeper into the Pacific and the Indian Oceans.

While the Indian Navy will use its operational assets to monitor the PLA Navy, the IAF’s land-based fighters can carry much higher firepower and punch. To ensure anti-access area denial (A2/AD) in the region, the IAF, along with the Indian Navy, must dominate the area from Indian shores to the Malacca Straits, Strait of Hormuz, and Northern Indian Ocean. The number of long-range fighter missions is bound to increase in the years ahead.

To Summarize

India is growing in economic and military stature. IAF’s fighter fleet is well-geared and trains regularly for very long-range missions.

Phase I of the ongoing Exercise ‘Tarang Shakti’ is in the southern peninsula and will involve long-range missions in the IOR region. For operational global reach, India would have to enhance its Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) footprint.

It would have to increase its air and Space superiority capability. More FRAs are urgently required for large and longer-distance packages, and more AEW&C would be required for long-range fighter offensive and defensive operations.

Global precision air strike capability would also mean more long-range cruise missiles and conventionally armed ballistic missiles. India would have to develop hypersonic weapons, even if it meant accelerating the development of the BrahMos II.

Even long-range air-to-air missiles will be required. Global Command and Control can be achieved through much better satellite coverage for navigation, communications, and targeting. More satellites are required.

The Indian satellite navigation system NavIC must become operational quickly. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing will support global reach. Manned Unmanned Aircraft Teaming will be important.

In the coming years, India’s ability to gain and maintain superiority in all operating domains of air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace will be required to create an asymmetric advantage, albeit the competition may make it progressively more difficult.

India must get to a position to dominate the northern Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, and Arabian Sea single-handedly. For India to secure its rightful place on the global high table, the time to act is now.