The four-day war drill between the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the U.S. Air Force (USAF) kicked off on November 10 to foster mutual learning and enhance interoperability between the two air forces.
However, the air exercise was marked by the conspicuous absence of IAF’s Rafale fighter jets.
In the lead-up to the air exercise, social media was buzzing with claims that three Indian Air Force (IAF) Dassault Rafale aircraft, with tail numbers BS-021, BS-022, and BS-027, were registered to participate in the bilateral Cope India 2025 exercise.
Incidentally, these are the exact Rafale tail numbers that Pak-backed propagandists claimed to have shot down during the May 2025 conflict (Operation Sindoor).
However, the IAF only sent its Su-30MKIs and French-origin Dassault Mirage-2000s for the bilateral air drill. The USAF sent its strategic bomber, the B-1 Lancer, as part of the four-day exercise held from November 10 to 13.
Furthermore, earlier it was reported that the exercise would bring together QUAD countries – India, the US, Japan, and Australia – for their first joint air drill. While India and the US were slated to participate as full members, Japan and Australia were scheduled to join as observer countries.
However, the air drill that kicked off on November 10 was only a bilateral exercise between India and the US and not Cope India 2025.
What’s Happening With Cope India 2025?
At the outset, it must be noted that neither the IAF nor the USAF issued an official announcement regarding Cope India 2025.
However, multiple Indian newspapers reported that Cope India 2025 is scheduled to take place in India in November, simultaneously with the Malabar exercise in Guam, US, in which all QUAD countries are participating.
Furthermore, it was reported that Japan and Australia will participate in Cope India as observer countries, making it the first air drill of QUAD countries.
Additionally, multiple portals reported that the IAF Rafales with tail numbers BS-021, BS-022, and BS-027 (the same tail numbers that Pakistan claimed it shot down during the May clash with India) will participate in the air drill.
Notably, even then, the EurAsian Times reported that there was no final confirmation as to which IAF aircraft would participate in the drill.
Separately, India was to host the QUAD summit in November.
However, by the first week of November, it was clear that the QUAD summit would not take place. The ongoing trade dispute between India and the US was cited as the primary cause for canceling the QUAD summit.
According to Indian media reports, the Cope India 2025 (with Japan and Australia participating as observer countries) has also been deferred.
The US was supposed to deploy its stealth F-35 fighter jets and B-1B Lancer bombers for the exercise. Instead, the US sent a solitary B-1 aircraft for “bomber integration sorties” with the IAF.
Meanwhile, the IAF sent only its Su-30MKIs and Mirage-2000s for the exercise.
On November 11, the IAF posted pictures of the drill on its official handle on the social media platform X.
INDIA–US AIR EXERCISE
The Indian Air Force and United States Air Force are engaged in a bilateral exercise from 10–13 Nov 25, aimed at fostering mutual learning and enhancing interoperability.
USAF is participating with the B-1B Lancer.#IAF #USAF #Interoperability… pic.twitter.com/49z1jYsv91— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) November 12, 2025
Interestingly, the IAF referred to the air drills as only “bilateral exercise.”
“The Indian Air Force and United States Air Force are engaged in a bilateral exercise from 10–13 Nov 25, aimed at fostering mutual learning and enhancing interoperability. USAF is participating with the B-1B Lancer.”
Meanwhile, there is no clarity on when the Cope India 2025 will take place, which countries will participate, or which aircraft will be sent for the drills, as no official statements have been issued on the exercise.
In fact, it’s not clear whether Cope India 2025 will take place at all, as the IAF and the USAF are already engaged in a four-day bilateral air force exercise.
Cope India started as a series of bilateral air force exercises between the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the United States Air Force (USAF), conducted primarily on Indian soil. The drills focus on enhancing interoperability, sharing tactics, and building mutual understanding of air combat capabilities.
Notably, while Cope India has been held biennially for the last two decades (except for a brief hiatus from 2010 to 2017), military analysts still passionately discuss and debate the results of the first Cope India in 2004, when the IAF MiG-21 Bisons scored a kill ratio of 9:1 against the USAF F-15 Eagles.
Why Are Rafales Missing?
Irrespective of the status of Cope India 2025, Indian military enthusiasts are asking why the IAF Rafales are missing in action from the bilateral Air Force exercise with the USAF.
Again, while there are no official explanations, it seems that the ongoing tensions with Pakistan, including the “terror incident” in New Delhi on November 10, might have played a role.
Secondly and more importantly, IAF is not bound to send its best jets for a “non-critical” bilateral drill. A USAF expert told EurAsian Times on condition of anonymity: “We’re practicing how to integrate heavy bombers with 4.5-gen fighters in GPS-denied, high-EW environments—exactly what the Su-30 brings to the table.”
Meanwhile, as the probe is still underway, there are signs that the latest terror attack is also linked with Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM).
Social media is buzzing with speculation about whether India will launch Operation Sindoor 2.0 as Prime Minister Narendera Modi has already warned that any further act of terror on Indian soil planned from Pakistan will be considered as an “act of war.”
Meanwhile, a car blast in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, on November 11 killed 12 people, with Pakistan blaming India for the blast, even when the Pakistan-based terror group TTP had already claimed responsibility for the blast.
New Delhi has vowed to bring the “perpetrators, their collaborators, and their sponsors” of a deadly car blast to justice and called it an act of terrorism.
“The country has witnessed a heinous terror incident, perpetrated by anti-national forces, through a car explosion near the Red Fort”, a cabinet statement read, after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
It was the first confirmation that India is treating the blast as an act of terrorism. The cabinet expressed “profound grief” over the loss of lives.
- Sumit Ahlawat has over a decade of experience in news media. He has worked with Press Trust of India, Times Now, Zee News, Economic Times, and Microsoft News. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Media and Modern History from the University of Sheffield, UK.
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