At a time when global airpower debates are dominated by fifth-generation fighters, stealth drones and artificial intelligence–enabled battle networks, India’s decision to secure more than 20 decommissioned SEPECAT Jaguar fighter-bombers from Oman highlights a different but no less consequential strategic reality: combat effectiveness is sustained as much by logistics, availability and readiness as by technological novelty. Rather than inducting additional airframes, New Delhi’s agreement with Muscat is focused squarely on harvesting critical spare parts to preserve the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) deep-penetration strike capability amid mounting regional pressures and persistent procurement delays.
The arrangement reflects a sober assessment of India’s current force-structure challenges. With fighter squadron strength hovering at around 29 against an authorised level of 42, the IAF is operating at its lowest numerical strength since the early 1960s. In this constrained environment, sustaining combat readiness increasingly depends on creative lifecycle management rather than rapid fleet replacement. The Jaguar transfer from Oman is therefore less about nostalgia for a Cold War–era aircraft and more about pragmatic force preservation in a volatile security environment.
India today is the world’s sole remaining operator of the SEPECAT Jaguar, a circumstance that places unique logistical and industrial burdens on the IAF. The aircraft’s original production ecosystem disappeared years ago, forcing India to rely on a combination of indigenous upgrades, limited global suppliers and the cannibalisation of retired airframes to keep the fleet operational. Against this backdrop, the availability of Oman’s retired Jaguars—complete with compatible engines, avionics and structural components—represents a rare and strategically valuable opportunity to stabilise fleet sustainment.
The India–Oman agreement, formalised during the 13th Joint Military Cooperation Committee meeting in November 2025, illustrates how defence diplomacy can be translated directly into operational resilience. More than 20 Jaguars will be selectively dismantled in Oman, with only high-value components shipped to India. Officials involved in the process have emphasised that transporting entire airframes would be inefficient and unnecessary, given that the objective is to alleviate specific spare-part shortages rather than expand the fleet numerically. This targeted approach mirrors India’s earlier acquisition of retired French Jaguars in 2018–2019 and reflects a maturing philosophy of cost-effective sustainment.
The strategic significance of the deal becomes clearer when placed in historical and doctrinal context. The SEPECAT Jaguar emerged from a rare convergence of European aerospace ambition in the 1960s, when France’s Breguet Aviation and the United Kingdom’s British Aircraft Corporation joined forces to design a rugged, survivable strike aircraft optimised for low-level penetration. Powered by twin Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca Adour turbofan engines, the Jaguar was built to operate from semi-prepared forward airstrips and to survive in heavily defended airspace through speed, terrain masking and structural robustness.
Operational history validated these design choices. Jaguars flew combat missions across Africa, the Middle East and during the 1991 Gulf War, earning a reputation for reliability under hostile conditions. For India, the aircraft’s selection in 1978 as the Deep Penetration Strike Aircraft marked a doctrinal leap. It signalled a shift toward survivable, precision-oriented strike operations at a time when South Asia’s strategic environment was becoming increasingly complex.
The initial acquisition of ex-RAF Jaguars was followed by a landmark licensed production agreement with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which assembled around 128 aircraft between 1982 and 2008. Including imported units, India inducted more than 160 Jaguars, encompassing specialised maritime strike variants tailored for anti-shipping operations. Known locally as the “Shamsher,” the Jaguar became deeply embedded in the IAF’s strike doctrine and institutional culture.
That legacy was cemented during the 1999 Kargil conflict, when Jaguars delivered laser-guided munitions against hardened targets in challenging high-altitude terrain. Their performance reinforced confidence in the platform’s precision-strike credentials and ensured its continued relevance well into the 21st century.
Crucially, the Jaguar’s longevity in Indian service has been underwritten by successive modernisation programmes rather than static preservation. The Display Attack Ranging Inertial Navigation (DARIN) upgrades progressively transformed a 1970s-era airframe into a digitally networked strike platform. DARIN I introduced modern inertial navigation and attack systems, while DARIN II added advanced avionics, head-up displays and improved radar functionality. The ongoing DARIN III upgrade represents the most ambitious transformation yet, equipping selected Jaguars with the Elta EL/M-2052 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, advanced electronic warfare suites, glass cockpits and helmet-mounted cueing systems.
These enhancements allow the Jaguar to operate as a sensor-shooter node within India’s network-centric warfare architecture, integrating seamlessly with Su-30MKI fighters, Rafales and airborne early warning assets. The aircraft’s compatibility with standoff weapons, including maritime strike munitions such as the AGM-84 Harpoon Block II, further extends its operational relevance in the Arabian Sea and northern Indian Ocean.
Despite these upgrades, the Jaguar fleet faces the inevitable challenges of age. Many airframes are now more than 45 years old, and global support has steadily diminished since production ended in 2008. The IAF currently operates roughly 115–120 Jaguars across six squadrons, a numerically significant force that is nevertheless operationally fragile. Several crashes in recent years have underscored the risks associated with sustaining aging platforms, intensifying scrutiny of maintenance practices and spare-part availability.
It is within this context that Oman’s retired Jaguar fleet assumes critical importance. The Royal Air Force of Oman inducted its Jaguars in 1977 and retired them in 2014, leaving an estimated 14 intact airframes at the time of withdrawal. Despite minor configuration differences, these aircraft share substantial design commonality with Indian variants, making them an invaluable source of compatible components. Their operational history—including demanding maritime missions—further attests to the durability of their systems and structures.
From a fiscal standpoint, the India–Oman transfer offers exceptional value. Sustaining existing Jaguars through spare-part acquisition preserves billions of dollars’ worth of operational capability at a fraction of the cost of procuring new fighters. With a single modern multirole aircraft typically priced between USD 80 million and USD 120 million, the economic logic of extending the life of proven platforms becomes compelling, particularly in an era of stretched defence budgets and long production lead times.
Strategically, the deal also strengthens India’s defence relationship with Oman, a key Gulf partner whose geography gives it outsized importance in the Arabian Sea and near the Strait of Hormuz. The transfer reinforces India’s growing security footprint in the region while underscoring Muscat’s role as a pragmatic and reliable defence partner.
More broadly, the Jaguar sustainment strategy highlights an emerging global trend toward sustainable military logistics. As supply chains become increasingly vulnerable to geopolitical disruption, air forces are rediscovering the strategic value of lifecycle management, redundancy and diplomatic sourcing of critical components. India’s approach demonstrates that legacy platforms, when intelligently modernised and supported, can continue to shape operational outcomes even in an era dominated by stealth and unmanned systems.
Ultimately, the India–Oman Jaguar arrangement is a case study in strategic pragmatism. It underscores the enduring truth that airpower effectiveness is defined not by generational labels alone, but by availability, readiness and integration into a wider battlespace. By converting diplomatic capital into operational resilience, New Delhi is buying critical time for indigenous programmes such as the Tejas Mk1A, Tejas Mk2 and the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft to mature without creating exploitable capability gaps.
In preserving the Shamsher’s operational edge, India signals that adaptive force management—rather than symbolic modernisation—remains central to credible deterrence. In a contested Indo-Pacific environment marked by rapid military modernisation and persistent regional tensions, sustaining proven strike assets is not a sign of stagnation, but an expression of strategic maturity.
