Captain Sebastian Vallette, call sign Dodi, surveys the dry and strange Indian plains as he searches out the Indian Air Force's Jaguar fighters that are tasked to attack a land 'target'.

The ground below isn't much different from that of Kosovo. But unlike in Kosovo, where he was tasked to provide air cover to North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) fighters, this time Captain Vallette is supposed to prevent 'enemy jets' from attacking ground targets.

Back in June 1999 in Kosovo, everything was real for Captain Vallette, a French pilot who has logged in over 850 hours. The sorties would last around 6.5 hours and he remembers refueling in midair up to five times at a go.

In Gwalior, where the French are conducting exercises with the IAF, the pilots of the latter are no strangers to real action. The Mirage 2000 pilots have been over Kargil in 1999, targeting Pakistani intruders with laser-guided bombs.

They were in action again when Pakistani soldiers intruded into the Neelam valley in Kashmir and occupied a peak last summer.

And when the Indian forces were mobilised against Pakistan for Operation Parakram, it was the Battleaxe Squadron of Mirage 2000s that was on high alert, ready to strike terrorist camps and other key installations in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Not that the two sides here are building a strategic relation to outlast the evolving geopolitical realities.

The French are hard-nosed sellers. They sell one version of advanced submarines to Pakistan and another to India. But they are dependable suppliers.

Due to the technological advancements of the French Air Force and the international exposure of their pilots, it is a great learning experience for the Indian Mirage pilots, says Air Officer Commanding (Air Force Station, Gwalior) Air Commodore J S Panesar.

The two sides are holding a historic combat exercise involving Mirage 2000 fighter jets from both sides, and Indian Jaguar planes. During February 8-16 the two sides will learn more about interception, strikes and air defence.

It is for the first time that IAF pilots are practising with midair refuellers. The French have brought with them a KC-135 refueling tanker, a key attraction for Indians.

"Air-to-air refueling is important for air power projection," says Air Commodore Panesar.

By the end of February, the IAF will acquire two IL-78s midair refuellers and by the yearend, India hopes to have six refuellers, which will initially be based in Agra.