BrahMos-armed Sukhois in Thanjavur to keep watch on Indian Ocean Region

Read | South India gets its first Sukhoi-30 MKI squadron to keep an eye on Indian Ocean Region

The squadron was formally inducted by Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat. The ceremony was also attended by Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria, DRDO chairman G Satheesh Reddy, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Air Command, Air Marshal Amit Tiwari and CMD of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited R Madhavan.

Speaking at the ceremony, Rawat said the resurrection of the 222 Squadron “highlights the integration and jointness that is the future for our armed forces” and “integration of this weapon system would not have been possible but for the support of the Indian Air Force, the HAL, the DRDO and BrahMos”.

He said the Sukhoi-30 MKI “equipped with BrahMos will indeed become a game-changer for our armed forces”.

“Not only will it extensively enhance the security of our maritime domain, but the squadron can also perform tasks in support of the land forces, protecting the vulnerable areas and points and any other tasks that may be assigned to them,” he added.

Air Force Chief Bhadauria congratulated the DRDO, HAL and the Southern Air Command. With a combat radius of nearly 1500-km without requiring a refuel, Sukhoi 30 jets have been modified to carry BrahMos air-to-surface missiles with a range of nearly 300 km, giving them the capacity to conduct long-range precision strikes.