New Delhi

Amar Preet Singh, Chief of the Indian Air Force, on Thursday flew a solo sortie in a MiG-29 UPG multi-role fighter aircraft from a forward operational base.

During the visit, the Air Chief Marshal also reviewed the operational preparedness of a base under the Western Air Command (WAC). The exact location of the sortie and the base was not disclosed due to security reasons.

Following the sortie, Singh interacted with Indian Air Force veterans at the base, meeting personnel who had served the country over the years.

The visit highlighted the Air Force’s operational readiness, combat capability and mission preparedness at forward bases.

The Mikoyan MiG-29 is a twin-engine fighter aircraft developed in the former Soviet Union. The Indian Air Force inducted the aircraft in the 1980s and later upgraded its fleet to the MiG-29 UPG standard after nearly four decades of service.

Originally developed in the 1970s to counter aircraft such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon of the United States Air Force, the MiG-29 has several variants, including versions operated by the Indian Navy.

The upgraded MiG-29 UPG is a fourth-generation air superiority fighter equipped with modern avionics, advanced radar systems and air-to-air refuelling capability. The aircraft can deploy air-to-air and air-to-surface weapons as well as precision-guided munitions.

The fighter jet can reach a top speed of about 2,465 kilometres per hour (Mach 2.35) at an altitude of 11,000 metres and has a service ceiling of around 17,000 metres, with a climb rate of approximately 330 metres per second.

Singh was commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force on December 21, 1984. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College.

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A qualified flying instructor and experimental test pilot, he has logged over 5,000 flying hours on a variety of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft.