A leader, military, political or in any other profession, is inevitably a lonely person, and yet a successful leader, especially in the military profession, must be a very sensitive person to be able to lead successfully through the motivation, dedication and loyalty of those he leads. In the military profession, of course, this acquires even greater salience since the profession, at one level, demands a willingness and readiness to make the supreme sacrifice, and, at another, involves victory or defeat of the country that nurtures its military power. According to an American saying, "There...

The Indian Air Force which was initially created as an independent military force proved to be an independent and versatile component of India's military power in 1971 War. This book provides insightful essays and material to critically review and revalidate some of the continuing concepts and approaches to the planning and execution of military operations. This edited version delves into the national interest protection and legitimate compulsions for India to go into war. The compilation also lays out the canvass for a comparison study with the one in 1965. The analyses on military strategy...

Aviation came to India quite early, in fact a century ago, and an aircraft factory, Hindustan Aircraft Ltd., had been set up 70 years ago in Bangalore. But India, from its 25 percent share of global manufacturing in 1750, had been deindustrialised in the previous two centuries and its technological and economic capacity had been emasculated by the Raj. Hence, it had no industry, leave alone defence industry, to talk of at the time of independence. But by 1948, the first Indian design of a primary trainer, the HT-2, was started and soon, the licensed production of the first jet fighter, the...

With the shift of global power from West to East, we have entered the era of an Asia-centred century. The rise of China and India, the recovery and resurgence of Russia on one side and Japan on the other, and the nature of the international order are leading to enormous changes. Changes in the military, economic and political dynamics of Asia are accelerating. Historically, changes in the international order and equations of power among nations have been almost inevitably accompanied by conflicts and wars. The challenge ahead of the international community in general and Asian countries in...

In the continuously changing nature of war, the terminologies in the military forces of the world also change, often more than war itself, mostly introducing esoteric vocabulary. The term "air dominance" in this context is of comparatively recent origin. The effect and outcome of war in and from the air has come round full circle, from command of the air a hundred years ago to air superiority in World War II to favourable air situation to "air dominance" now. Most people who use this term actually use it in lieu of air superiority. Air-to-air dominance of the adversary is certainly crucial...

The People's Republic of China is not only a large country, spanning from the Pacific Ocean in the East to cover most of the Asian landmass till Central Asia in the West. The geographical spread is not the only challenge that China poses; understanding China poses a far bigger challenge. And limited transparency makes it that much more difficult. It has generally been accepted across the world that global power is shifting from West to East essentially due to the rise of China and India. Hence, there is a fundamental need for Indian scholars to study different aspects of China and its...