World Must Learn From Op Sindoor, Ongoing Wars Guided By Ego: Air Force Chief

Indian Air Force chief Amarpreet Singh has praised the timely cessation of the conflict with Pakistan in May, asserting that the world must learn how to terminate a conflict from Operation Sindoor. Speaking about the wars raging for several years in other countries, the Air Chief Marshal stated that such conflicts lack objectivity and are guided by ego.

"One thing they need to learn from Operation Sindoor is how to terminate the conflict. Selection and maintenance of aim—that is where the world is going haywire. They are forgetting their own objectives—how and with what objective it started, and where they have landed up. Now, it is more of ego or self-pride," he said yesterday.

But that wasn't the case during Operation Sindoor, during which the Indian Army and Air Force took out nine terror targets deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7. A conflict played out over the next four days, with the Pakistani commanders eventually pleading for a ceasefire on May 10. India agreed. The conflict ended.

The Indian forces were driven by their objective, the Chief of Air Staff pointed out, crediting them for being able to avert a long-lasting conflict. "In our case, the objective was very clear, and it was achieved on the first day itself. We had offered a ceasefire on the first day itself, but it was not agreed to. But the adversary came and said they wanted to stop. I think that was a good call taken," he said.

If there had been no timely cessation of conflict, it could have taken an unknown direction, the Air Chief Marshal suggested. "In three and a half days, about 85 hours, we were able to terminate the conflict. Otherwise, we don't know where it would have gone after that. That is something people have not realized."

His remarks came at India Defence Conclave 2025, hosted by the defence think-tank, Bharat Shakti.

The Indian forces, too, learnt some "lessons" from Operation Sindoor that need to be incorporated into the model of the planned theaterisation, Chief of the Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan remarked at the same event yesterday.

Following the decisive operation in May, India must have "ISR (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance) and kinetic operation capabilities across the length and breadth of Pakistan," the CDS noted. "That would be, I think, the new normal."

This would translate to a "new normal" for the forces, too, the top officer said, explaining that this would mean better operational preparedness in air defence, countering unmanned aerial systems, and electronic warfare. "That should be the new normal because that is the kind of warfare that we are expecting," added Gen Chauhan.