The Air Force Commanders Conference opened at Air Headquarters in New Delhi on Thursday, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asking the Indian Air Force (IAF) to strengthen and sustain the element of surprise in both offensive and defensive operations.

That edge, he said, is what keeps the force ready against conventional threats and against newer ones arising from rapid advances in technology and the changing nature of modern warfare.

The Defence Minister also launched a suite of artificial intelligence applications developed in-house by the IAF under UDAAN, the Unit for Digitisation, Automation, Artificial Intelligence and Application Networking. He called for stronger intelligence and surveillance, closer jointness among the three Services and dedicated doctrines for electronic, cyber and space warfare. Victory in future wars, he told the commanders, will depend on technological sophistication, speed of response and precision, and not on the number of aircraft alone.

"During my address, I emphasised the need to continue bolstering intelligence and surveillance capabilities, enhance integration among systems and identify potential threats before they unfold," Singh said after the session.

Air Force Commanders Conference told to prepare for kamikaze drones

Drones and air defence took up a large part of the address. Pointing to the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas, the Defence Minister said both have become critical in modern warfare. He asked IAF commanders to stay prepared for kamikaze drones, surveillance operations and counter-drone warfare.

The IAF has already moved in that direction, he said.

Operation Sindoor lessons now part of IAF procedures

According to the Ministry of Defence, the Defence Minister commended the IAF for putting its operational doctrines into practice during and after Operation Sindoor. He praised the professionalism, restraint and judgement shown by air warriors in carrying out their assigned tasks, and the coordination between the Army, Navy and Air Force. Lessons from the operation, he said, are reflected in the IAF's evolving operating procedures, particularly the growing emphasis on drones and air defence systems.

UDAAN AI applications go live on the IAF secure network

The new applications were built by the IAF's AI Centre of Excellence under UDAAN. They are meant to automate and speed up work in three areas, namely operations, administration and aerospace safety.

All of them have been deployed on the IAF's secure network.

The launch came less than two weeks after Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit took charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff on October 31. In his first address as Chief, he set out his VAYU vision, with restoring combat strength named as the first priority. This is the first Air Force Commanders Conference under his command.

Second Tour of Duty for Agniveers came from Services' feedback

On personnel policy, the Defence Minister said the decision on a Second Tour of Duty for Agniveers was taken after feedback from the armed forces. He reiterated that the government will keep folding suggestions from the Services into its policy decisions.

The Union Cabinet approved the two-year Second Tour of Duty on November 4. Under it, the 75 percent of Agniveers who were to leave after four years will be offered two more years in uniform, and all willing Agniveers who meet the selection criteria can then be enrolled as regulars.

On November 7, speaking to air warriors at Air Force Station Bagdogra on the eve of Diwali, he had called the decision a Diwali gift for Agniveers. In the same address, he asked the forces to stay ready for cyber attacks, drone swarms and misleading social media campaigns. Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit was present at that interaction.

Two-day conference brings together all IAF commanders

The conference is being attended by the Air Officers Commanding-in-Chief of all IAF commands, Principal Staff Officers and Director Generals. This year's theme is "The Year of Empowerment: Maximising Efficiency Through Decentralisation".

Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit and Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh attended the inaugural session. Vice Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Inderpal Singh Walia was also present.

The IAF holds the commanders' conference twice a year to review operational preparedness and plan for the months ahead. At the October 2023 edition, the Defence Minister had asked commanders to analyse and learn from emerging air warfare trends, with a focus on air defence systems, drones and aerospace. The November 2024 edition ran for three days, with special emphasis on winter operations along the northern borders.

In May this year, at the Joint Commanders' Conference in Jaipur, he had asked the three Services to cultivate the element of surprise so that India stays unpredictable to its adversaries. He described Operation Sindoor there as a short-duration, deep-penetration, high-intensity and high-impact operation.