54

VAYU
Exercise Shoorveer
Brave Warriors in the Desert
Trio of C-130J Super Hercules aircraf
of No.77 Squadron in low level tactcal
formaton over the Rajasthan desert during
Exercise Shoorveer.
55
III/2012
E
xercise Shoorveer took place
in the deserts of Rajasthan from
1 May 2012, witnessed by General
VK Singh, then Chief of Army Staff who
was received at the battle ground on third
day of the exercise by Lieutenant General
Gyan Bhushan, COC-in-C, South Western
Command, plus other senior Army and Air
Force offcers.
GOC I Strike Corps, Lieutenant
General Ashok Singh, briefed the Army
Chief on details of Shoorveer which
predominantly involved mechanised battle
maneouvres in which MBTs, ICVs, Long
Range Artillery, Air Defence Weapon
Systems, Electronic Warfare Systems and
Surveillance Equipment were operated
ZSU-23-4 Schilka self propelled
air defence system
in synergy with the Indian Air Force.
The IAF deployed fghter aircraft types
including Sukhoi Su-30s, Jaguars, MiG-
27s along with Mi-25 attack and Mi-17
assault helicopters plus UAVs. IAF
transport aircraft which took part in the
exercise were IL-76s, An-32s and the
recently inducted C-130Js.
Exercise Shoorveer was based on
a series of transformational initiatives
spanning organisational structures
and absorption of new generation
technologies, particularly in the felds of
56
VAYU
T-90 main batle tank being
maneuvered to fring positon
Gunners eye-view of target under atack by Mi-35 gunship helicopter
precision munition, advance surveillance
systems, space and network centricity and
implemented on ground to fnetune war
fghting concepts.
The Exercise was based on an
integrated theatre battle concept under
South Western Army Command with I
Strike Corps in the offensive, supported
by 10 Corps and other elements of the
South Western Command. According
to a spokesman The Army and IAF
tested new battle fghting concepts and
doctrines during the exercise with real
time images of the battle zone provided
to a centralised command and control
centre from fghters, unmanned aerial
vehicles and attack helicopters, waging
war in network centric environment and
massed tank drills backed by long range
artillery guns. More than 300 combat
vehicles including T-90s and T-72s,
155mm howitzers, multi barrel rockets
and about 60,000 troops took part in this
major exercise in the Rajasthan desert.
57
III/2012