Japan's F-2A Fighters Debut on Indian Soil in 14-Day Veer Guardian-2026

For defense and aerospace professionals, the first deployment of Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-2A fighters to Indian soil is not a routine exercise story. It is a test of expeditionary airpower, combined air operations, and host-nation basing logistics at Air Force Station Jodhpur from September 9 to 22. The fact that both air chiefs flew the indigenous Tejas during Veer Guardian-2026 turns a bilateral drill into a reference point for platform interoperability and India's Make in India aerospace brand.

On September 20, 2026, Air Chief Marshal A P Singh confirmed that Japanese fighter aircraft had operated from Indian soil for the first time, a milestone anchored in the bilateral exercise Veer Guardian-2026 at Air Force Station Jodhpur. The exercise, running from September 9 to September 22, brought together Indian Air Force frontline platforms — the indigenous Tejas, the Russian-origin Su-30MKI, and the French Rafale — with Japan Air Self-Defense Force Mitsubishi F-2A fighters. The deployment matters less for the number of aircraft involved than for what it represents: Tokyo's ability to project airpower far from home and New Delhi's willingness to host foreign combat aviation in the heart of its western desert.

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On September 20, 2026, Air Chief Marshal A P Singh confirmed that Japanese fighter aircraft had operated from Indian soil for the first time, a milestone anchored in the bilateral exercise Veer Guardian-2026 at Air Force Station Jodhpur.

The exercise included high-level sorties that were deliberately symbolic. Air Chief Marshal Singh flew solo in a Tejas, while JASDF Chief of Staff General Takehiro Morita flew the same Indian-built light combat aircraft with an IAF pilot. The two chiefs later exchanged badges, a custom that in air forces signals professional respect and institutional partnership. Singh called the first-time operation of Japanese fighters from Indian soil a great milestone in the relationship. More operationally, Morita said the deployment had taken defense cooperation beyond exercises and demonstrated the ability to deploy air assets across the Indo-Pacific region. That phrasing is important: it links a bilateral training event to theater-wide logistics, basing, and deterrence.

The strategic backdrop is the evolving Indo-Pacific security order. India and Japan have strengthened defense ties through the Quad, the Malabar naval exercise, defense industry dialogues, and reciprocal logistics agreements. Both governments share concern about Chinese military pressure in the East and South China Seas and along the Himalayan border. By moving JASDF F-2As to an Indian air base, even temporarily, Tokyo signals that its airpower can operate across the maritime and continental geography of South Asia. For India, hosting Japanese fighters normalizes a pattern of interoperability that could extend beyond naval operations into air defense, maritime strike, and aerial refueling corridors.

The Tejas element gave the exercise a domestic industrial dimension. Having a foreign air chief fly the platform and describe it as a symbol of India's technological innovation and Make in India is a validation that Indian policymakers have sought for export credibility. The Tejas has faced criticism over delays and cost, but its inclusion as a host-nation aircraft flown by the Japanese air chief, while Su-30MKI, Rafale, and F-2A fighters share the same ramp, positions it as a credible peer in combined air operations. The choice of Jodhpur, a large air base with established ranges and space for complex force packaging, also showcased India's capacity to host high-tempo exercises without disrupting combat readiness.