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During the Sino-Indian War of 1962, China beat India badly, making it look bad. The war was fought over a border dispute in the Himalayas, and even though India had the better force on paper, China won. People have asked over and over again why the Indian Air Force (IAF) wasn’t used to help the troops on the ground. In this article, we’ll look at why this choice was made.
Candidates can find various reasons why the IAF was not used in the 1962 war.
First, it’s important to remember that the IAF did not stay out of the war totally. It helped the ground troops in some ways, like sending troops and supplies to the front lines by air. But it wasn’t used to do what it was made for, providing air cover and hitting enemy targets.
One reason for this was that the war was fought in a tough area. The Himalayas made it hard for planes to operate, and the IAF didn’t have much practice fighting in these conditions. The high altitude and changeable weather made it hard for planes to fly well, and the rough terrain made it hard to find enemy sites and attack them.
The lack of good airfields in the area was also an issue. The plains of India, which were several hundred miles from the conflict zone, were the closest place to an airport. This meant that planes would have to fly a long way to get to the front lines of the battle and would be easy targets for Chinese fighters and air defences on the ground. The IAF couldn’t refill and rearm planes while they were in the air. This meant that each time the planes were used, they would have to make a round trip, making things even more complicated.
The Indian government was also worried about how using the IAF in the war would look to the rest of the world. The international world, especially the United States and the Soviet Union, which were both trying to gain power in the area, paid close attention to the war. The Indian government feared that sending in the IAF could worsen the conflict and get these big powers’ attention, leading to a bigger war.
There were also political issues to think about. The Indian government didn’t want to use the IAF because they feared making China even more angry. There was worry that using air power could make China take the war to a higher level and invade India in a big way. The government also didn’t want to be seen as the one who started the fight and didn’t want to give China any reason to do more.
In the end, many things went into the choice not to use the IAF in the 1962 war. Even though the IAF did help the ground troops in some ways, it was not used for its main job, providing air cover and hitting enemy targets. This choice was made because of the difficult terrain, the lack of good airfields, international concerns, and political factors. But the war did wake up the Indian military, and in the years that followed, it changed a lot in how it was set up and what it could do.
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