Exercise Udara Shakti 2026: IAF and Royal Malaysian Air Force Bilateral Air Combat Exercise

Defence / International Relations · Monday, 24 August 2026

The Indian Air Force (IAF) concluded Exercise Udara Shakti 2026 in Malaysia, a biennial bilateral tactical air combat exercise between the IAF and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) focused on dissimilar air combat training (DACT), joint mission planning, and strategic interoperability across the Indo-Pacific. The exercise featured IAF Rafale fighters in combat training against Malaysian Su-30MKM Flankers and F/A-18D Hornets, and demonstrated the IAF's trans-deployment capability after Exercise Pitch Black 2026 in Australia.

Quick highlights

Context

The Indian Air Force (IAF) concluded its participation in Exercise Udara Shakti 2026 in Malaysia following its deployment at Exercise Pitch Black 2026 in Australia. The seamless trans-deployment from Australia to Malaysia without returning to Indian bases demonstrated the IAF's growing expeditionary operational reach across the Indo-Pacific region, supporting India's Act East Policy and deepening defence ties with Southeast Asian nations.

Key Facts

Exercise name: Udara Shakti (meaning Air Power/Strength). Type: Biennial bilateral tactical air combat exercise. Participants: India (IAF) and Malaysia (Royal Malaysian Air Force — RMAF). Host: Malaysia. Key activity: Dissimilar Aircraft Combat Training (DACT)—IAF Rafale vs. RMAF Su-30MKM Flankers and F/A-18D Hornets. Subject Matter Expert Exchanges (SMEE): Operational planning, flight safety, electronic warfare countermeasures, maintenance. Strategic airlift: IAF C-17 Globemaster III and RMAF Airbus A400M Atlas. Preceding exercise: Pitch Black 2026, Australia. Trans-deployment: IAF ferried frontline fighter squadrons directly from northern Australia to Southeast Asia.

Significance

Exercise Udara Shakti 2026 deepens India's bilateral defence relationship with Malaysia—a key ASEAN partner—under the Act East Policy framework. DACT between Rafales and Su-30MKMs is strategically valuable as both air forces operate variants of Russian-origin Su-30 platforms, enabling cross-fleet operational and maintenance knowledge exchange. The trans-deployment from Pitch Black 2026 to Udara Shakti 2026 demonstrates the IAF's ability to sustain extended overseas operations—a key marker of India's growing hard power projection capability in the Indo-Pacific.

Challenges / Way Forward

Sustaining bilateral defence exercises requires consistent diplomatic engagement and logistical infrastructure. ASEAN nations, including Malaysia, balance their defence relationships between major powers (US, China, India), requiring India to position itself as a reliable and non-coercive defence partner. Way Forward: India should institutionalise Udara Shakti into a broader India-ASEAN air exercise framework; expand SMEE to include cyber and electronic warfare domains; leverage the shared Su-30 platform to offer MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) services to Malaysia and other Su-30 operators in ASEAN.

Exam Angle

GS Paper II: International Relations—India's defence diplomacy, Act East Policy, India-ASEAN relations. GS Paper III: Internal security, defence, indigenisation of defence. Prelims must-knows: Udara Shakti = biennial IAF-RMAF bilateral exercise; host = Malaysia; DACT = Dissimilar Aircraft Combat Training; IAF aircraft = Rafale; RMAF aircraft = Su-30MKM + F/A-18D; C-17 Globemaster III = IAF heavy transport; A400M Atlas = RMAF transport; Exercise Pitch Black = multilateral air exercise hosted by Australia. RMAF = Royal Malaysian Air Force. Context: India's other major air exercises—Cope India (US), Garuda (France), Desert Knight (UAE-France).

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