Editing Strategic Forces Command (section)

=== Air-launched nuclear weapons ===
[[File:Dassault Mirage 2000.jpg|alt=|thumb|The [[Mirage 2000]] of the Indian Air Force is believed to be assigned the nuclear strike role, operating from Maharajpur Air Force Station.]]
Nuclear-armed fighter-bombers were India's first and only nuclear-capable strike force until 2003, when the country's first land-based nuclear ballistic missiles were fielded.<ref name="auto"/>

In addition to their [[Attack aircraft|ground-attack]] role, it is believed that the [[Dassault Mirage 2000]]s and [[SEPECAT Jaguar]]s of the [[Indian Air Force]] are able to provide a secondary nuclear-strike role.<ref>[http://www.openbriefing.org/issuedesks/nuclearissues/indian-nuclear-forces-2012/ Indian Nuclear Forces] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820113841/http://www.openbriefing.org/issuedesks/nuclearissues/indian-nuclear-forces-2012/ |date=20 August 2014 }}, 14 July 2012.</ref> The SEPECAT Jaguar was designed to be able to carry and deploy nuclear weapons and the Indian Air Force has identified the jet as being capable of delivering Indian nuclear weapons.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130514044336/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-10-17/news/34525680_1_jaguar-strike-fighters-stealth-fifth-generation-fighter-aircraft-rafale-fighters India plans to impart power punch to Jaguar fighters], October 2012.</ref> The most likely delivery method would be the use of bombs that are [[Unguided bomb|free-falling and unguided]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cdi.org/issues/nukef&f/database/innukes.html |title=CDI Nuclear Issues Area – Nuclear Weapons Database: French Nuclear Delivery Systems |publisher=cdi.org |access-date=16 July 2010}}</ref>

Three airbases with four squadrons of Mirage 2000H (about 16 aircraft with 16 bombs from 1st and 7th squadrons of the 40th Wing at [[Maharajpur Air Force Station]]) and Jaguar IS/IB (about 32 aircraft with 32 bombs from one squadron each at [[Ambala Air Force Station]] and [[Air Force Area (Gorakhpur)|Gorakhpur Air Force Station]]) aircraft, are believed to be assigned the nuclear strike role.<ref name="auto"/>