Massive excitement for Fit Bharat’s #StepChallenge*PM Sh Narendra Modi’s Fit India campaign getting momentum with every passing day. FitBharat in collaboration with India’s premiere sport energy drink Fast&Up India starting a unique 30 days fitness challenge for Indian citizens from 24 October. Former Special Forces Officer and member of the elite Presidents Bodyguard, Major Surendra Poonia VSM, is organising this revolutionary hashtag based fitness challenge at midnight today. The 30-day #StepChallenge is being organised under the FitBharat initiative, a movement inspired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Fit India campaign.
Major Poonia working out
Participants taking part in the #StepChallenge are simply required to run or walk with their pedometers/step counting app on (using a step counting app, Apple Watch, Fitbit, Garmin) and share a screenshot of the number of steps taken. Participants are urged to share their daily steps on Twitter with #StepChallenge and tag @FitBharat on their social media. Daily prizes will be awarded by FastandUp_India for the most number of steps male, female and best picture/video of the day. Gift hampers will reach the winners within two weeks. The challenge is part of the broader fitness drive fighting against lifestyle diseases and to promote the spirit of fitness amongst the Indian citizens. Speaking to SSBCrack about his Step Challenge Major Poonia says, ”walking is easiest exercise and everyone irrespective of age can do so we decided to start from Step Challenge.” He urged every youth to join in and motivate friends and their family to join fitness drive. He firmly believes that a fit, healthy & happy citizen is an asset to the nation.
Indian army is going to conduct territorial army recruitment rally for 106 INF BN (TA) PARA, 110 INF BN (TA) MADRAS and 115 INF BN (TA) MAHAR from 30 Oct 2019 till 09 Nov 2019. Aspirants who want to join the territorial army as a soldier can apply for this TA recruitment rally. Candidates can find more details regarding the territorial army bharti below:
Age Limit: 18 to 42 years as on date of recruitment rally.
Education Qualification:
Soldier (General Duty): Should be matric pass with minimum 45% marks in aggregate & 33% in each subject or pass/qualified in higher class i.e. 12th class or above.
Soldier (Tradesman-Chef): 10th simple pass.
Soldier (Clerk): 10+2 pass from any stream with minimum 60% marks in aggregate and 50% marks in each subject. An individual with proficiency in computers and typing will be given additional weightage.
A grand Defence Investiture Ceremony was held at the premises of Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi on 19 March 2019. At this ceremony, many distinguished officers of the Tri-services were presented with medals for their service in the armed forces.
Lieutenant General Mahendra Vikram Singh, who was formerly an Air Vice Marshal in the Indian Airforce was presented the Ati Vishist Seva Medal (AVSM) for his successful tenure in the armed forces. AVSM is presented to all ranks of Indian Armed Forces in order to recognize their “distinguished service of an exceptional order”.
The awardee has the full right to use the “AVSM” as post-nominal letters as we see in most of the cases. Lt General Mahendra Vikram Singh was commissioned in 1983 in Indian Airforce and has been appointed the Commandant of Command hospital Airforce, Bangalore where he provided his exceptional services. He was then given the charge of Training command in Bangalore in March 2018. He made the news because of switching between the services and due to holding two of the second highest ranks of Indian Army and Indian Airforce respectively.
Lieutenant General Mahendra Vikram Singh (formerly Indian Air Force Air Vice Marshal), was presented the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) by the President of India in a grand Defence Investiture Ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, 19 Mar 2019.
The confusion peddled by many who were misinformed:
What caught the attention of many defence enthusiasts and aspirants was the former rank and service of Lt General Mahendra Vikram Singh who was awarded AVSM in the ceremony. Many of the aspirants were confused and thought it was a mistake in typing while some of them claimed it as a case of mistaken identity. The comment section of the Instagram post was filled with many uninformed comments suspecting the credibility of the admin of the Instagram page of official Indian Airforce. Clearly, they weren’t properly aware of such a case of changing the services in between and didn’t possess the information if such a thing can happen in the armed forces. The change in the services have been a norm, yet happen on rare occasions
Let’s have a look at the rules regarding the change in services in between the services, if possible in any scenario.
The official existing rules for switching between the Indian Army and Indian Airforce and vice versa:
Now, according to the currently existing rules of the armed forces of India, an individual belonging to the Medical or the dental branch can change the services given if any kind of vacancy or urgent requirement arises in the chosen service. Officers from the Armed Forces Medical Services pool have the advantage to change the services in between Indian Army, Indian Airforce and Indian Navy in any kind of given order. Certain conditions arrive where an officer or any other ranks go on deputations or on temporary duty to other services and sometimes they act as a liaison between the services as per the situational demand.
Let’s look for another example of this Lady officer:
The second and earlier prominent example of such a case is Lt. General Punita Arora of the Army Medical Corps (AMC) who graduated from AFMC, Pune. She did her masters in Gynaecology and Obstetrics from her alma mater only. During her career span of over 40 years, she held various distinguished posts in the field operational areas as well and after taking the command of AFMC, Pune in 2004 she became the first women officer in Indian armed officer forces to command a medical college. She moved from Indian Army to Indian Navy as the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) have a common pool from where an individual can get a transition from one service to another which completely depends upon the requirement factor. She is the first woman in India to reach the second highest rank in both the Indian Army and Indian Navy which is Lieutenant General and Vice Admiral respectively.
Lieutenant General Punita Arora PVSM, SM, VSM is a former General Officer of the Indian Army and the Indian Navy. General Arora was the first woman in India to don the second highest rank i.e. Lieutenant General and the first female Vice admiral of Indian Navy.
The Intent and reasoning behind such a switch between services:
The basic reasoning behind such perks allotted to the AFMS pool is that because the officers in different services are trained specifically for their prescribed role such as flying, technical, administrative or combat. A medical officer won’t have to change much in his work profile and can be consistent in his role.
I guess this must be clear in the mind of many aspirants who were dwindling about the above case and were confused.
Indian Army is for the most adventurous people from the 125 crore Indians. Indian Army is not just a place for the toughest of fighting men and machines, but it is also the place for people who love technology, who do not love technology so much, doctors, teachers, religious preachers, farmers, lawyers, intelligence agents, dentists, businessmen, policemen and you name it. In the Indian Army, you will never get bored while exploring the opportunities given to you. As an army aspirant, you must know beforehand which branch you will opt for if given a chance and what will be your backup branch. Here we present you the 21 different cadres of the Indian Army categorised into 3 branches that you can choose from:
Non-Technical Branches (Fighting Branches):
These are the fighting branches of the Indian army. Without these branches, the army cannot survive. These branches are the front line fighting formation of our army. They face the enemy, fight them, and defeat them. They are:
Infantry:
Infantry basically attacks and defends. All the other branches and arms support these soldiers on foot. The soldiers of Infantry usually are at the first always.
The love of a die-hard tank enthusiast. This branch consists of the armoured regiments of the Indian Army. It was formed in 1947. Consisting of 63 armoured regiments, the corps celebrates 1 May as the corps raising day.
Artillery is the second largest arm of the Indian Army. It constitutes almost one-sixth of Army’s total strength. It consists of guns, mortars, rocket launchers, unmanned aerial vehicles, surveillance systems, missiles and artillery firepower.
It is subdivided into Field Artillery and Corps of Army Air Defence.
Field Artillery consists of mortars and guns to tackle enemy ground troops.
Army Air Defence consists of rockets and guns to tackle airborne enemy threats. Artillery
Army Aviation Corps:
Apart from attacking the enemy from the sky, the AAC provides logistical support for the Indian Army in remote and inaccessible areas, especially in the Siachen Glacier. They also perform tasks like Combat search and rescue (CSAR), artillery lift, Combat transportation, logistics relief, military prisoner transportation and Medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) during a war and in the case of natural calamities.
HAL Cheetah of aviation corps
Technical Branches:
Corps of Signals:
Corps of Signals handles army’s military communications. The Corps works closely with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop command and control software.
Corps of Signals Stamp
Corps of Engineers:
This branch is for the tech savvy guys of the Indian Army. All the engineer-related tasks are handled by these men. Combat Engineers, MES, BRO, MAP and Survey of India comes under this branch.
Combat Engineers consists of three groups: Madras Sappers, Bengal Sappers and Bombay Sappers. They undertake construction works during wartime like building bridges to transport armoured tanks, etc. Bridge constructed by combat engineers
Military Engineering Service (MES) is the only construction agency in the country which carries out all construction related tasks like the construction of residential and office buildings, hospitals, roads and runways, a marine structure like docks and harbours across the country including border areas.
Border Roads Organisation (BRO) develops and maintains road networks in India’s border areas and friendly neighbouring countries.
Married Accommodation Project (MAP) begun to construct married accommodation for the service personnel of the Indian Armed Forces.
Survey of India is India’s central engineering agency in charge of mapping and surveying.
Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (EME):
The Corps of EME has varying responsibilities related to the design, development, trial, inspection and refit of weapon systems and equipment. They also provide technical advice to units and conduct recovery operations in peace and war.
A gun being checked by EME personnel
Service Branches (Support Branches):
These are the branches that provide support to the men fighting the war in terms of logistics, medical education, lawyers, etc
Army Service Corps:
The ASC is mainly responsible for the provisioning, procurement and distribution of Supplies of food ration, fresh & dry eatable items, FOL(Fuels, oil, lubricants), Hygiene Chemicals, carriage & distribution of ammunition, and items of Hospital Comforts to Army, Air Force and when required for Navy and other paramilitary forces.
Postal stamp in honour of ASC
Army Ordnance Corps:
AOC’s main responsibility is to provide material and logistics support to the Indian Army and, if required, to the Navy and Air Force during war and peace. The inventory includes all the material required by the troops ranging from clothes to weapons including tanks, missiles etc., except fuel, fodder, and medicines which are maintained by the Army Service Corps, the Military Farms Service/Army Remount and Veterinary Corps and the Army Medical Corps respectively.
Stamp honouring AOC
Remount and Veterinary Corps:
RVC is responsible for breeding, rearing and training of all animals used in the army. RVC established the Zanskar Pony Breeding and Training Centre in Ladakh, which at 3146 m above sea level has been declared as the highest Stud farm in the world by the Limca Book of Records. The Centre is involved in breeding Zaniskari ponies for use by the army in high altitudes.
RVC Dogs at Rajpath
Military Farms:
The military farms were started nearly 130 years ago by the British to supply the Indian Army with milk products. Over the years, however, the utility of the farms have diminished. They now contribute a mere 14 percent of about 210 million litres of milk annually consumed by 1.3 million-strong Indian Army. As of August 2017, the Government has ordered closing down of all the 39 Military Farms.
A military farm of Indian Army
Army Education Corps:
The Army Education Corps develops soldiers and officers of all ranks in a variety of educational disciplines. The centre provides education in both combat and non-combat operations. It also provides education in various military academies like IMA, INA, AFA, NDA, ACC, etc and post-commission courses like YO course. As of now, there is a proposal to close the AEC to redeploy the men for other roles.
M.I. was initially tasked with generating only tactical or field intelligence in all countries bordering India. Its geographical mandate was set to 50 km from the border. M.I.’s mandate also includes counter-terrorism in the north and the north-east and generating pinpoint intelligence for small team operations. It is also tasked with counterintelligence in the army, which entails detecting spies in military areas.
Corps of Military Police:
CMP is trained to handle prisoners of war and to regulate traffic, as well as to handle basic telecommunication equipment such as telephone exchanges. They can be identified by their red berets, white lanyards and belts, and they also wear a black brassard with the letters MP imprinted in red.
Army’s military police
Judge Advocate General:
It is the legal branch of the Indian army. The JAG branch deals will all the court marshals, legal advice to the Indian Army and practising military law on its personnel.
A court marshal
Army Pioneer Corps:
A pioneer is a soldier employed to perform engineering and construction tasks. The term is in principle similar to sapper of the technical branch. Their major role of frontier road building had now been allocated to civilian workers. Indian Pioneer Corps was re-established in 1943.
Crest of pioneer corps
Canteen Stores Department:
CSD is the most profitable retail chain in India. They sell a wide variety of products like household provisions, kitchen appliances, alcoholic drinks, cars, and sports equipment.
Goods are procured by CSD in bulk, and sold at concessional rates (without taxes), compared with retail prices. CSD prices are low as the goods sold are exempt from taxes. A huge profit is earned by the Canteen Stores Department.
A CSD store of Army
Defence Security Corps:
The role of DSC is to ensure the protection and security of designated defence Installations against sabotage and pilferage. DSC provides security at Indian Ordnance Factories, India’s nuclear laboratories and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) establishments along with CISF. DSC comprises mainly of superannuated soldiers who are re-employed for a few years.
DSC Crest
Armed Forces Medical Services
Army Medical Corps:
Basically, the AMC is a specialist corps in the Indian Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel. The AMC has seen a lot of revamps to the corps starting from Indian Medical Service, Indian Medical Department, Indian Hospital Corps, Army Hospital Corps, Army Bearer Corps, Indian Army Medical Corps (IAMC). The IAMC was re-designated as Army Medical Corps with effect from 26 January 1950.
AMC personnel in action
Army Dental Corps:
This is the branch for all the dentists out there. The ADC officers help the troops maintain their oral health care and provide them with dental hygiene.
A JCO of ADC in action
Military Nursing Service:
Military Nursing Service is an integral part of the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS). The women officers in the MNS were treated as underdogs since the inception of AFMS in 1948.
After the independence, the Officers of MNS have not only served in India but have also played a role in United Nations peacekeeping missions abroad in UN missions.
Officers of MNS
So, which branch have you chose to join? Comment your favourite branch in the comments section.
Hello everyone! I’m Yajur Chahal, I got recommended for IMA-148 course on 9th Sept 2019; CDS Entry from 31 SSB SCN Kapurthala. It was my 7th attempt and 1st attempt after Graduation. For the sake of tradition, I would want to share my experience but alongside that, I have a short story to story to share with all of you. On 3rd Sept, being excited as I would face the interview of IMA-148 (reporting date- 4th Sept) after 2 and a half years of my last attempt of TES 37.
I bought some essentials, got a haircut and eventually got late. At 10 pm, after all the shenanigans I was heading towards my place on activa and two streets before, two cars were parked on both side of the road and all of a sudden one of car passengers of the left car opened its door. I banged myself into the door and the next thing I could was blood all over my face. The car owner came rushing towards me, took me inside and gave water to wash my face. After washing, it was deduced that the bruise is severe and my orbital septum was visible due to the big cut beneath my left eye.
Within 15 minutes, they took me to the General Hospital, Panchkula and due to unavailability of Cosmetic Surgeon; they referred me to GMCH, Sector 32, Chandigarh. I called my parents in between and told them not to worry but being impatient of course, my father reached there. We all went to GMCH at 11:30 pm, got my X-ray done to check if there’s anything serious with bones. I got two layers of stitches beneath the eye. And this process took 4 hours.
At 3:30 am, I was home and my mother got much tensed seeing me like that. I had some food took the medication and slept. After 3 odd hours, I got up due to pain and I couldn’t open my left eye as it was all swollen.
-It’s 4th Sept morning, and my parents were in doubt if I’ll be going for the interview or not. I didn’t let them know that I was in pain. Every time they asked me about it?
I told them, “EK ANKH SE TO ABHI BHI DIKH
RAHA HAI NA, BOHOT HAI!”
I packed my bag with my mom and they finally agreed on me going for the attempt. We all travelled to Kapurthala and reached there in time.
I changed my clothes and sat with 37 other candidates who reported, everyone was asking about the incident and I told them briefly about it.
The CHM came and asked me to sit aside and said, “I don’t think DSO will allow you to appear in the interview.” I got worried and tensed.
My parents were standing outside the centre just in case I couldn’t get a chance to stay inside.
The DSO (who was the GTO also) came, Addressed the candidates with an opening address and brief instructions about do’s and Don’ts in the centre. After an odd hour, when he was done, the CHM redirected him to me and I saw both of them talking.
He came to me and said
DSO- Hey Chap, What’s your name?
Me- Yajur Chahal, Sir.
DSO- Okay Yajur, I can see that your
condition is not at par to appear in this interview. There’ll be many things,
outdoor tasks and written tests as well and it’s visible that you can’t open
your left eye.
Me- No Sir, I’m pretty much fine!
DSO- Okay Get Up and come with me.
He stood in front of candidates with me and
addressed them.
DSO- So, Mr. Chahal is here in a condition
you can see. Do you think it’s justifiable to let him go through the process in
such a condition?
Candidates- No Sir.
DSO- No doubt, it takes zeal to show up in
such a condition, but if He has something inside him, he’ll come back again and
will make the great too!
After this, He came with me aside and said
DSO- Look Yajur, I’m here to convince to
not to take risks. Health is of first priority, go back home, get proper
recovery and come back.
Me- (looking at him in the eye)
With due respect Sir, you’re right! And yes
I’m in pain but I can’t just GO BACK!
He called somebody after this and talked
for 15 odd minutes. After the call, He came and said that, “Okay Chahal, you
take that Chest No. But Write a letter addressing Commandant SCN Kapurthala;
about your condition and also that you’re fully responsible for your health.”
I, being overwhelmed after listening to this took less than a minute to write the letter and finally had the Chest No. and joined the rest of the candidates.
-The Screening tests went well, though it
was of great difficulty to look with one eye but I got over with them!
16 out of 38 candidates made it through and
my name was called 7th on the list and got the Chest No. 7. I told about it to
my parents to go back as they were staying in the town if anything unusual
happens.
-All the three accessors asked me about the
mishap and everyone at the Centre came to know about the story in two days. I
faced difficulty in psychology tests just because of not being able to look
with both the eyes because I wasn’t at all habitual and comfortable that way. I
wrote all my stories in time, attempted all WATs and SRTs.
-I called for the interview the same day, The IO was President of 31 SSB and he greeted me well. Though, there were certain things such as my academics where the declining of marks was really a question. But I tackled the questions well and applied
“TASTE THE WORDS BEFORE SPILLING THEM OUT!”
technique there.
I wrote Poetry Writing as my hobby to which he asked me to recite one of my poems. He listened to the whole poetry and asked me in a humorous way,” For whom did you write this?”
I smiled and said,” Mere Imagination,
Sir!”
-GTO was a challenge as an outdoor task was there. Which makes you sweat and I was said to not to wet the stitches!
Regardless of the stitches, I forgot about them for a while and gave me 100% to all the tasks. The swelling was there but I gave ideas in all the group tasks!
In GTO-II, I’ve attempted 15 obstacles and
my group cheered me for that. They all acted friendly and we all did well in
the GTO tasks!
That night we all 16 sat and joked around being it the last night before the conference.
In short, it was a wonderful joyride.
-My conference held for a very short time and was called earlier than that of the most candidates. I thought I’ve lost it and I was blaming myself for being in a position of not performing well.
-The psychologist came in the Result Room
and told the unusual and mundane speech about NOT GIVING UP AND ALWAYS TRY TO
GRAB THE OPPORTUNITY.
He finally opened the file and started
calling Chest No.’s.
He said, CHEST NO. 9.
Faces of all candidates from 1 to 8 were
pale and dull.
Next was CHEST NO. 14.
It sort of made everybody clear that there will be no recommendations from 1-8 and 10-13.
I was about to burst out being in regret
and pain.
He said, CHEST NO. 7.
I was numb, THAT PART OF MY LIFE…THAT
LITTLE PART RIGHT THERE! THAT IS CALLED “HAPPINESS”.
Out of 16 candidates, 5 of us got
recommended.
I finally made the GREAT. And there was no doubt to it! So all my friends who are aspirants and been trying for defence Services, Always Remember.
“The Key To Success Is To Focus On Goals, Not Obstacles.”
-So, Have a Vision, Think Big, Ignore the Naysayers, Work your Ass Off, Change Your Life.
The Indian navy has published the INET 2019 result of the officer candidates. Many candidates have cleared the INET cut off marks and will be facing the SSB interview soon. Candidates who are looking for the INET officers cut off marks can check the details below.
The INET result has been published by the Indian Navy on 18 Oct 2019. Candidates can check the INET Officer result on the official website of the Indian Navy. All the candidates who have cleared the INET exam can also download their SSB interview call letter from the same portal. We suggest all the candidates go through the instructions mentioned in the SSB interview call letter/ admit card.
With the success of the first season of the Amazon Prime original, Manoj Bajpayee starring web series, the Family Man, which gave a quirky but relatively realistic portrayal about the lives of officers working in the National Investigation Agency which is the country’s premier terror probing agency. Many people have gotten intrigued about the lives of spooks and the uniquely challenging security threats looming over the country. Though narrative was greatly satirical in tone, it does successfully managed to paint a vividly realistic picture on the types of security challenges India faces. The character of the terrorist Moosa Rehman played brilliantly by Neeraj Madhav, has been depicted as an ISIS chemical weapons expert in Syria, who comes to Delhi to plan a deadly chemical attack in the nation’s capital moving away from fiction, the reality of chemical, nuclear and radiological weapons are indeed a genuine security concern, as has been seen by the chemical attack in Syria. Closer to home, the term ‘dirty bomb’ was referenced concerning Kashmir. But what is a dirty bomb? Is it a chemical weapon? Is it a Nuke? Or something more sinister? Read on to find out.
The Family Man promotional poster
So, What is a dirty bomb? How does it concern me?
Radioactive material being tested
A ‘Dirty bomb,’ according to the United Staes Nuclear Regulatory Committee, is a term given to a radiological dispersal device, also known as RDD.” This is a peculiar type of explosive which is engineered crudely, fusing the components of conventional explosives such as TNT or Dynamite, along with radiological material such as Cesium 137, Plutonium 238 among a host of other radioactive compounds. The ease of development, shock value and panic caused, combined with the fact that these radiological explosives may be designed to be transported using anything from everyday backpacks, office suitcase-sized bombs to trucks. The ease of transport and it’s deadly impact makes it an increasingly attractive choice for terror groups.
The extent of radiological contamination depends on several factors ranging from the amount of radiological material used the type of the radioactive component, the size and type of conventional explosive, all the way down to the means of dispersal and wind speed during the aftermath of a radiological attack.
In the event of a dirty bomb attack, victims who are at the closest proximity to the blast site will for apparent reasons sustain the most significant injuries. Bystanders further away from the kill zone will suffer from the spread of the radiological component used. The potency of the radioactive will gradually reduce as it spreads, reducing overall concentration and the extent of the damage.
The exact impact of the damage to the victim and radiological fallout cannot be ascertained as it exclusively depends on the unique components of the bomb, its design, the conventional explosive used and circumstances surrounding the blast. According to the NRC, the effects of radiation will be determined by
The extent of radiation absorbed by the victim’s body
The specific type of radiation involved, for instance, Alpha, Beta, Gamma rays.
The means of exposure external or internal, whether it was absorbed by the skin, inhaled or ingested.
The concept of snipers picking off targets swiftly from extreme distances has piqued the interest of people around the world since the inception of military practice. Sniping has evolved a lot since the Trench warfare of the First, and Second World Wars. The curiosity about the deadly art and the psyche has remained, however, as there is just something bone-chilling about a special breed of warrior, who stealthily stalks his prey for hours, patiently waiting for that one fleeting moment, in which all those years of training unravels itself in one precise kill. This article intends to highlight the five longest recorded sniper kills in contemporary military history.
Sniper sporting a ghillie suit
1.) Carlos Hathcock (United States Marine Corps)
Vietnam era master sniper Carlos Hathcock
Legendary Vietnam era master sniper Carlos Hathcock is the stuff legends are made up of! With a confirmed kill record of 93 enemy combatants and earning the nickname white feather, words fail to describe the daredevil exploits of the United States Marine sniper. Just any one of Hitchcock’s feats deserve mention in any list about snipers, after all, the marine had crawled for three days without food or sleep into enemy territory, evading Vietnamese military patrols, and getting close enough to shoot an NVA General in the heart! In another incident, the elite US sniper shot an enemy sniper with Hitchcock’s bullet piercing through the Vietnamese sniper’s rifle scope! This is an iconic incident that has been reimagined several times in Hollywood movies depicting military snipers! What puts Carlos Hathcock on this list however is his historic 2,500 yards long kill with using a now prehistoric M2 Browning machine gun! The record remained unbroken for 39 years until it was beaten by Canadian sniper Arron Perry in 2002, during Operation Anaconda in Afghanistan.
The legendary sniper being awarded for meritious service
2.) Arron Perry (Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry, Canadian Army)
Snipers from Princess Patricia’s Ligh Infantry deployed in Latvia
Canadian Army sniper Arron Perry, picked up the mantle, breaking the record set by USMC sniper Carlos Hathcock after nearly four decades on a different battlefield. Perry served as a sniper in the Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. A Master Corporal at the time Perry was deployed under ‘Operation Anaconda’ to counter insurgents swearing their allegiance to Al Qaeda. During one of the sniper teams engagements, Perry zeroed in on an insurgent approximately 2,526 yards away, squeezing the trigger and eliminating the dreaded terrorist! The sniper rifle system used to accomplish this astonishing feat was the C15 Sniper weapon system, a favourite amongst Canadian troops
Representational image
3.) Robert Furlong (Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry, Candian Army)
Digital art of Canadian sniper Robert Furlong
Another Canadian Sniper, who has served in the Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry regiment, Robert Furlong, like Perry, was also a part of ‘Operation Anaconda’ in Afghanistan. During a fierce engagement with the Al-Qaeda, the now 40-year-old retired sniper managed to kill an Al-Qaeda fighter from a hair raising distance of 2,657 yards, using a Tac-50 sniper rifle. Furlong was awarded the Bronze Star for valour by the US forces and the General Campaign medal by the Candian Army.
Bronze Star for Valour
4.) Corporal of Horse Carlos Harrison (Blues and Royals Regiment, British Army)
Collage of British sniper Carlos Harrison
British Sniper Carlos Harrison quickly became a media sensation following his historic sniper shot in Afghanistan! Harrison served as a Corporal in the British Army’s famed cavalry regiment. The ace marksman was already a veteran of several military conflicts, such as Bosnia and Iraq before his deployment to Afghanistan. The British sniper honed his deadly accuracy and tactical acumen down to an art form during his service in Iraq. During his time in Afghanistan Harrison saw combat in the infamous Helmand Province, a tiny piece of land which saw a bulk of the fighting in the decades-long campaign in Afghanistan. During a fierce encounter, the famed British sniper broke all previous records gunning down two Taliban machine gunners from a distance of 2,707 yards, with his trusted British army issue L11 543 sniper rifle. The kill was confirmed by an Apache Attack Helicopter with the help of the choppers range finder.
British sniper looking through the scope of his L11 543 Sniper rifle
Name: Undisclosed (Joint Task Force 2 Canadian Special Forces)
Representational image of JF 2 Operators
The record for the longest standing sniper kill was made by a Candian sniper from the uber-elite Joint Task Force 2 in 2017. Not much is known about ultra-secretive JF 2, in fact, the Candian Prime Minister was substantially kept in the dark, to the point of being oblivious of the unit’s activities. While the unit has gained some prominence in recent years, with several of its operations being acknowledged, the identity of the Special Forces sniper has understandably not been disclosed. What is public knowledge, however, is the unbelievable distance in which the fatal shot was made, the Canadian operator took out an ISIS terrorist from a range of 3,871 yards! Demolishing any of the previous records as mentioned earlier by a margin and then some more! The Canadian sniper embodies the sniper credo of ‘one shot one kill, no luck all skill!”
Canadian Armed Forces hold the distinction of having some of the deadliest snipers
Sniper rifle and ballistic technology along with training doctrines have evolved since the battlefields of the great wars, one thing which has remained is the sniper’s otherworldly patience, lasers like focus and blood-curdling ruthlessness. These self-reliant soldiers distinguish themselves from the rest working in small teams taking on some of the deadliest missions, with minimal support, making their hair raising exploits some of the romanticised military escapades in popular culture!
The Dassault Aviation designed Rafale fighter jet is a beast of an aircraft! Its uber-advanced features make it deadly and much-needed addition to the Indian Airforce’s arsenal. With the first Rafale fighter inducted and the rest of the first batch to be pressed into service by May 2020, it is essential to look at the three lethal missile systems which make the Rafale a nightmare for the enemy!
1.) Meteor BVRAAM Missile
Meteor Missile
The MBDA designed Meteor is a next-generation beyond visual range air to air missile (BVRAAM), with a 150-kilometre effective kill range. The Meteor can cruise at a speed of 4 mach which is approximately 4,939 kilometres per hour. This battle-tested missile is capable of being launched from a host of high-end fighters such as the Eurofighter Typhoon, the SAAB Gryphon, Dassault Rafale and the Lockheed Martin-built F-35 Lightning 2. The Meteor has been designed as an all-weather missile giving it the ability to effectively eliminate its intended target in a variety of testing climatic conditions. The rocket is also stealth capable furthermore the missile has the largest ‘no escape zone’ when it comes to Air to Air Missiles (AAM).
Rafale fighter armed with SCALP missiles (Representational image)
The SCALP missile, also known as Storm Shadow, is a low observable and long-range deep strike missile. The combat-tested uber-sophisticated rocket was designed to eliminate stationary High-value targets, such as enemy airfields or command and control structures. The induction of the weapon in the IAF’s arsenal will give the force enhanced capabilities to conduct future Balakot style operations from a further distance and at lowered pilot risk. The highly potent missile has an effective range of 300 kilometres, though some experts claim that the SCALP’s actual range is more at around 560 kilometres; however, this claim cannot be ascertained. The missiles have the ability to cruise towards its intended target at 1000 km/hr. The rockets all-weather capability makes its induction an excellent alternative the India-Russia jointly developed BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile.
3.) MICA Missile
MICA missile on display
The MICA is a multi-mission air to air missile (AAM) with a range of 50 metres to 80 kilometres. The MICA like the Meteor can cruise at four mach (4,939 km/hr). The European weapon has superior tactical flexibility allowing the missile to be deployed in some of the most demanding mission conditions. The MICA comes in two variants the first being the Multi-Target BVRAAM while the second variant is a Short Range Combat missile. Given the MICA’s multi-purpose role, the weapon system comes with two distinct guidance systems. Other than the Rafale, the MICA will also be integrated into the IAF’s Mirage 2000s following the deal signed with France.
IAF’s sophisticated Rafale fighter
With the Rafale coming next year armed with some of the worlds most potent missile systems, the IAF will soon be in an elite club amongst some of the worlds most powerful airforce’s
