NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force's (IAF) MiG-27 will showcase its ground attack capabilities at the Vayushakti 2019 exercise on February 16.

The MiG-27 upgrade is a very potent air to ground strike aircraft, which is capable of carrying a variety of armament loads comprising of bombs, rockets & front guns. This aircraft can operate over a wide range of speeds due to its swing-wing design.

#Vayushakti2019 : MiG-27 UPG – MiG-27 upgrade is a very potent air to ground strike aircraft which can carry a variety of armament loads comprising of bombs, rockets & front guns. Its swing-wing design permits it to operate over a wide range of speeds. pic.twitter.com/cQPSxKhwuz — Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) February 11, 2019

The MiG-27 was originally built by the Mikoyan-Gurevich design bureau in the Soviet Union but is now produced in India by Hindustan Aeronautics as the Bahadur ("Valiant").

Though this aircraft is based on the MiG-23 fighter aircraft, it is optimized for air-to-ground attack. The MiG-27 is currently used by Indian, Kazakh and Sri Lankan Air Forces in the ground attack role.

IAF's Vayushakti 2019 is scheduled to be held on February 16 at Pokhran Air to Ground Armament range near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. The exercise will be used by the IAF for the demonstration of its firepower and showcase the ever-increasing potential of IAF's combat platforms.

''Many Air Forces around the world display their might and aerial firepower through such demonstrations. Indian Air Force also conducts the demonstration to showcase the ever-increasing potential of its combat platforms over the years and to assure the citizens, its ability to safeguard India’s national interests,'' the IAF said in the Facebook post.

The IAF post further stated, ''These exercises are also vital for operators, planners, and the leadership. It provides an opportunity for forces to operate in near realistic scenarios.''