The Indian Air Force (IAF), on Monday, recalled one of its landmark operations that took place 26 years ago, on May 26, 1999.
The operation, codenamed Operation Safed Sagar, was launched to support of ground forces under Operation Vijay—the military campaign to evict Pakistani intruders from the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir during the Kargil War.
As part of Operation Safed Sagar, a wide range of IAF assets, including Mirage 2000s, MiG-21s, MiG-23s, MiG-27s, MiG-29s, Jaguars, and Chetak helicopters, were deployed, in what was the first large-scale use of air power in the Kashmir region since the 1971 Indo-Pak War.
Never before had an air force been tasked with such high-altitude precision operations in rugged mountainous terrain—making it a watershed moment in military aviation history, the IAF said.
According to the Air Force, the operation was a "trailblazer" as it saw air power employed in unconventional roles. The operation demonstrated the effectiveness of limited use of air assets in a localised conflict, and shattered the long-held idea that the use of air power would inevitably escalate into full-scale war, the IAF said.
An earlier article by the IAF read: The effect of accurate attacks is best summed up by a message received from one of the HQ of the Indian Army......."You guys have done a wonderful job. Your Mirage boys with their precision laser guided bombs targeted an enemy Battalion HQ in the Tiger Hill area with tremendous success. Five Pakistani officers were reported killed in that attack and their Command and Control broke down - as a result of which our troops have literally walked over the entire Tiger Hills area. The enemy is on the run. They are on the run in other sectors also. At this rate the end of the conflict may come soon."
In an X post, the IAF said the operation not only showcased the versatility and resolve of the Indian Air Force but also established the deterrent value of calibrated air strikes—even in a low-intensity conflict. "It proved that air power could decisively alter the course of battle without crossing international boundaries."