The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Friday announced that one of its pilots flew a Rafale fighter, while a French Air Force pilot flew an IAF Russian-made Su-30MKI fighter.
A French pilot makes a FAM flight aboard an @IAF_MCC Su-30MKI. Great aircraft !
— Webmaster Chasse (@WebChasse) July 4, 2019
// Un pilote du #RC2_30 effectue un vol de familiarisation à bord d'un #Flanker-C indien. Sacré avion ! //#Garuda #Rafale pic.twitter.com/RR0jXAmOZc
During the flight, the French Air Force pilot took a selfie from the cockpit of the two-seat fighter jet.
#ExGaruda2019 : The objective of Indo-France joint exercise is to share good practices & to enhance interoperability & cooperation between the two Air Forces.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) July 5, 2019
During the exchange flying, Sqn Ldr Sourabh Ambure flew in the FAF Rafale aircraft.@Armee_de_lair @FranceinIndia pic.twitter.com/BNg1AzWPPj
The aim of the Garuda-VI exercises is to test new tactical and strategic techniques, debug interaction and test military capabilities. This is also an opportunity for the Indian Air Force to test the capabilities of the Rafale fighter jets, which are poised to join the Indian Air Force fleet in a few months.
During the two-week exercises, the Indian Air Force will use 10 Su-30MKI, IL-76 multifunctional fighters and the Il-78 aerial refuelling tanker.