The Indian Air Force has concluded a demanding two-country deployment involving Exercise Pitch Black 2026 in Australia and Exercise Udara Shakti 2026 in Malaysia, completing successive multinational and bilateral air-combat engagements across the Indo-Pacific.
For Exercise Pitch Black, hosted by the Royal Australian Air Force, India deployed Rafale fighter aircraft alongside air forces from more than 20 participating countries. The exercise involved complex large-force employment missions conducted in a high-threat, multi-domain setting.
Large-force missions require aircraft and supporting elements from different participating forces to coordinate planning, timing, communications and tactical execution. The Australian phase gave Indian crews an opportunity to operate within a large multinational formation and compare methods with personnel from several air forces.
After completing the Australian engagement, the Indian contingent deployed directly to Subang in Malaysia for Exercise Udara Shakti. Indian crews flew high-intensity combat sorties and joint tactical manoeuvres with the Royal Malaysian Air Force.
The bilateral phase included operations involving Malaysia’s Su-30MKM and F/A-18 Hornet aircraft. Indian aircrew flew with and against these platforms in training scenarios intended to refine air-combat tactics and improve combined operational flexibility.
The programme extended beyond flying activity. Personnel exchanged experience in maintenance practices and mission planning, while subject-matter experts held professional discussions. These interactions are important because effective air operations depend on technical support, ground coordination and planning systems as much as cockpit performance.
The direct movement from Australia to Malaysia also demonstrated the ability to sustain an overseas deployment across two separate exercises. Such a deployment requires coordination of aircraft, personnel, maintenance support and logistics over significant distances.
Pitch Black is designed as a major multinational training event in which participating air forces practise complex missions and improve interoperability. Udara Shakti provides a more focused bilateral setting for India and Malaysia to work on tactical cooperation and professional exchanges.
The exercises did not involve combat operations or an operational deployment against any country. They were training engagements intended to improve proficiency, interoperability and understanding among participating forces.
India’s participation also reflects growing defence engagement across the Indo-Pacific, where air forces regularly use exercises to improve communication and develop the ability to operate safely in complex environments. The Rafale deployment gave the Indian Air Force an opportunity to test its procedures alongside varied aircraft and operational methods.
Training with different aircraft types also helps crews understand varying performance characteristics, tactical approaches and coordination requirements. The value lies in disciplined exposure to unfamiliar operating patterns within controlled exercise conditions.
With both exercises concluded, the immediate task will be the return and post-deployment review of lessons from the Australian and Malaysian phases. The experience gained in large multinational missions, bilateral air-combat training, maintenance and mission planning can inform future exercises and operational preparation.
