Aviation

British F-35s take on Indian Su-30s and Jaguars during simulated attack on aircraft carrier

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British F-35s take on Indian Su-30s and Jaguars during simulated attack on aircraft carrier

Eight Su-30s and four Jaguars engaged six F-35Bs during a carrier defense scenario as part of HMS Prince of Wales’ participation in Exercise Konkan.

Indian Air Force (IAF) Su-30MKIs, Jaguar IN maritime attack aircraft and an Il-76 Phalcon airborne radar practiced attacking the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales and Carrier Strike Group 25 (CSG25), while Royal Air Force F-35B Lightning IIs Britain responded to stop them as part of Exercise Konkan.

Complex “face-to-face” maritime attack and air combat scenarios, the first of their kind, took place in October 14, 2025and it was announced for the three services involved in October 18. This was a special drill two days after the current iteration of the two-decade-old Indian and Royal Navy Konkan Exercise concluded off the western coast of India.

The RAF listed a total of 22 aircraft that participated in the scenario, identifying the composition as six F-35Bs from 617 Squadron embarked on HMS Prince of Wales, eight Su-30MKIs, one Indian AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) aircraft, which has been named the Il-78 ‘Mainstay’, in reference to the Il-76 with the EL/W-2090 Phalcon. radar – and four Jaguars.

The publication in X added that the services practiced “four air fights” and “three types of missions.” Notably, the publication incorrectly identified the aircraft carrier as HMS Queen Elizabeth.

aerial exercises

Exercise Konkan 2025 took place as the six-month deployment of the Royal Navy’s Carrier Strike Group 25 (CSG 25), dubbed Operation Highmast, is coming to an end. The flotilla is on its return journey to the United Kingdom, after completing the Indo-Pacific leg of its deployment.

The RN statement said: “Half a dozen F-35Bs acted as a shield for the carrier, while a dozen Indian fast jets (eight Su-30 ‘Flankers’ and four Jaguars, aided by an Il-78 ‘Mainstay’ AWACS aircraft) attempted to penetrate the defensive screen to conduct simulated attacks on the flagship and its escorts.”

In the images released by both services, we can only count six aircraft, including two F-35B, two Su-30MKI and two Jaguar IN, and the rest of the aircraft have not been captured. The RAF said it was the “first UK carrier clash with Flankers testing fusion, agility and tactics”.

The Su-30MKI is the IAF’s frontline multirole/air domain fighter, with a much more established foothold than the Rafale. Around 40 Su-30s have also been integrated with the BrahMos-A, the air-launched version of the Indo-Russian ground- and ship-launched BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.

The IAF’s Jaguar is another vital ‘deep penetration attack aircraft’, with many of its three variants – the Jaguar IS, IB and the maritime attack IM – receiving DARIN III (Display Attack Ranging Inertial Navigation) upgrades. “For the air power of both nations, the air combat drills allowed personnel to test individual skills, weapons systems and sensors, as well as tactics particularly against aircraft they do not normally encounter,” the RN said. Press release saying.

The air combat may have involved CAP (Combat Air Patrol) F-35Bs colliding with the Su-30s. It would have introduced British pilots to the maneuvering capabilities they would encounter flying against the Russian and Chinese air forces with their Su-30SM/SM2, Su-35S, J-16 and Su-33 fighters. However, these aircraft are very different and in many ways superior to the Indian Sukhois with better engines, electronics, electronic warfare and radar arrays.

The IAF AWACS mentioned by the Royal Navy is a Russian-made Il-76 cargo aircraft carrying an Israeli EL/W-2090 AESA radar dish, known as Phalcon AEW&C, of ​​which India operates three aircraft. The Royal Navy also incorrectly identifies it as the Il-78 ‘Mainstay’.

The IAF press release said: “On 14Oct25, IAF Sukhoi-30 MKI, Jaguars, AWACS and AEW&C aircraft joined Royal Navy F-35Bs from HMS Prince of Wales for a joint exercise over the Indian Ocean region. The training strengthened interoperability, mutual trust and collective commitment to stability regional”.

Konkan Exercise 2025

The Indian Navy announced Konkan-25 began in two phases on October 5, 2025, off the western coast of India, and concluded on October 12, now noting that the two-decade exercise “grew significantly in scale and complexity, fostering greater interoperability and mutual understanding in maritime operations between the two navies.”

The first “port phase” included “professional interactions, deck visits, sporting events, cultural engagements, Joint Working Group meetings and exchanges of subject matter experts.” The second maritime phase included “complex maritime operational exercises” such as “anti-aircraft, anti-surface and anti-submarine exercises, air operations and other developments in seamanship.”

These were carried out with the frontline assets of both navies, including the aircraft carriers INS Vikrant and HMS Prince of Wales. One HMA1 Merlin also operated from INS Vikrant, carrying some of the MiG-29K/KUB naval fighters of INAS 303 “Black Panthers” (Indian Naval Air Squadron 303), and the others operated from the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

The Royal Navy in October 8 reported that the HMS Prince of Wales arrived in the state of Goa, in the south-west of the country, and that the HMS Richmond Type 23 ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) frigate arrived in the city of Mumbai, in western India. Mumbai is home to the Western Naval Command, also known as the “Sword Arm” of the Indian Navy.

The destroyer JS Akebono of the JMSDF (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force) and the frigate HNoMS Roald Amundsen of the Royal Norwegian Navy also participated in this year’s edition of the exercise.

Interestingly, British F-35Bs from HMS Prince of Wales had just flown with Royal Malaysian Air Force Su-30s during the Bersama Lima 2025 exercise, which concluded on October 6and announced the UK’s Carrier Strike Group’s next stop in India “for further defense engagement”. Australia, New Zealand and Singapore also participated in Bersama Lima.

The IN press release then announced CSG 25’s planned “one-day” exercise on October 14 with the Indian Air Force off the western coast of India, before the British flotilla “continued its planned deployment.” The press release further added: “This exercise is a reaffirmation of the shared commitment to ensuring safe, open and free seas.” […] consolidate strategic ties, improve interoperability and contribute to regional maritime stability.”

The aircraft carrier set sail from Britain in April for the Carrier Strike Group 25 (CSG25) deployment, dubbed Operation Highmast. The Carrier Air Wing aboard HMS Prince of Wales hosts 24 F-35Bs from both the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force, assigned to 809 NAS (Naval Air Squadron) and 617 Squadron “Dambusters” respectively. Interestingly, an F-35B from 617 Squadron of HMS Prince of Wales was stranded in the southern Indian state of Kerala for 37 days from June 14 due to bad weather and a hydraulic problem.

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