Indian Air Force instructors join RAF to train British pilots in historic UK deployment

New Delhi: Three Indian Air Force Qualified Flying Instructors (QFIs) have joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) at RAF Valley in Wales to train British pilots, marking the first deployment of Indian QFIs to the UK. The two-year assignment places Indian instructors directly within the UK’s advanced flying training system and marks a new form of military cooperation between the two countries.

The Indian instructors will train RAF pilots on the BAE Hawk T2, which is also used by the IAF for the final training module of its fighter pilots. The team is led by a squadron leader-level officer, with the Indian personnel remaining under IAF command while working under RAF commanders for instructional duties.

The decision to send the instructors to the UK was taken in February this year after India and the UK agreed to enhance military training engagements following the 19th UK-India air staff talks in New Delhi. The IAF described the deployment as a “landmark step” in strengthening the two countries’ shared commitment to professional excellence, interoperability and enduring bilateral ties.

The arrangement also builds on an expanding exchange of instructors across military institutions in both countries. An IAF officer joined the RAF College Cranwell in January this year, while an Indian Navy officer has served at the Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth since May 2024.

An Indian Army officer was deployed as an instructor at the Royal military academy Sandhurst in May 2025, taking the number of Indian military officers serving as instructors at British academies across the three services to three. The latest IAF deployment extends this exchange into RAF pilot training.

The move comes as India and the UK continue to strengthen their broader security partnership. In April, defence secretary, Rajesh Kumar Singh, held talks with UK national security advisor, Jonathan Nicholas Powell, on regional security developments and reviewed progress under existing India-UK defence cooperation frameworks.

The external affairs minister, S Jaishankar, also discussed regional and global security issues with Powell, while the national security advisor, Ajit Doval, talks with Powell focused on the annual India-UK strategic dialogue. These engagements have covered both bilateral defence cooperation and wider regional security concerns.

During former UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, official visit to India in October last year, prime minister, Narendra Modi, and Starmer agreed to expand exchanges between their armed forces through joint exercises, training and capacity building. Modi also welcomed the port call of the UK carrier strike group and the Royal Navy’s Konkan exercise with the Navy.

The two countries committed to strengthening maritime security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, including the establishment of the regional maritime security centre of excellence under the Indo-Pacific oceans initiative. They also welcomed progress on integrating IAF QFIs into RAF training and on strengthening the wider training and education relationship.

The expanding military relationship forms part of the “India-UK Vision 2035”, released in June last year, with defence identified as one of its five key pillars. India and the UK have also adopted a 10-year Defence Industrial Roadmap focused on advanced technologies, complex weapons, innovation and co-development.