“Sea, Sky, and Strategy: Insights from Naval Aviation“
Naval aviation brings together people, systems, and responsibility in ways that are not always visible from the outside. Commander Mandeep Singh’s experience comes from working within this environment, where coordination and readiness matter every day. In this conversation, he shares perspectives shaped by such settings rather than by titles or timelines.
1. To start with, could you please share a brief introduction about yourself and your journey so far?
I’m Commander Mandeep Singh. I bring over eight years of sea experience and more than fifteen years in naval aviation, where I worked across operations, maintenance, safety, and large-scale technical management. A significant part of my journey has involved close collaboration with aircrew, engineering teams, and cross-functional units to ensure operational readiness.
I’ve had the privilege of interacting with international navies and working with major global aviation organisations such as Boeing, Israeli Aerospace Industries, Malat, and Ilyushin Russia handling technical coordination, supply chains, and lifecycle support with these industry leaders. I hold a certification in Engine Run-Up/Taxi and 737 maintenance directly from Boeing, which strengthened my understanding of commercial-military interoperability.
In addition, I am a Project Management Professional (PMP) from PMI and a Six Sigma Black Belt, which have helped me blend operational discipline with process excellence and data-driven decision-making.
After taking PMR, I transitioned these capabilities into project management, where I now work on aviation and infrastructure modernisation initiatives in Goa. My journey has been defined by technical depth, global exposure, and a constant commitment to continuous improvement.
2. India has a vast coastline. What are the key “on-ground” gaps you’ve observed in coastal monitoring, and how can IoT sensors (buoys, underwater sensors, AIS, drones) help address these gaps?
India’s coastline is one of our greatest strategic assets, but on the ground, a few critical gaps persist. First, situational awareness is still fragmented different agencies monitor different segments, often with limited real-time data sharing. Second, there are blind zones, especially in shallow waters and fishing corridors, where traditional radar or AIS coverage drops. Third, we still depend heavily on manual reporting, which delays response during suspicious vessel movement, weather events, or emergencies. And finally, maintenance of legacy equipment along the coast often creates reliability issues.
IoT technologies can close these gaps very effectively. Smart buoys and underwater sensors can continuously track parameters like vessel movement, water quality, depth disturbances, or unauthorized underwater activity 24/7, without human presence. AIS-integrated IoT nodes can extend coverage into blind spots, especially for small fishing boats that may not carry full AIS systems. And drones equipped with thermal cameras or automatic identification modules can rapidly scan areas where surface sensors are limited, providing real-time imagery and incident alerts.
What this creates is a connected coastal grid viz a live, sensor-driven network that stitches together data from sea surface to seabed to air. With analytics layered on top, we can move from reactive monitoring to predictive coastal security, which is exactly what a country with India’s coastline needs.
3. You are associated with AeSI, Goa Chapter. How do you see professional bodies like AeSI contributing to skill development, technical awareness, and specialized training in India’s evolving aviation and defense sector?
Professional bodies like AeSI are becoming vital contributors to India’s evolving aviation and defense sector. With rapid advancements in unmanned systems, digital MRO, and indigenous aerospace capabilities, AeSI helps ensure that students and professionals remain aligned with emerging industry needs.
One of our key roles is acting as a bridge between academia, industry, and government. This not only exposes young engineers to real operational challenges but also helps embed a deeper understanding of sustainability including anthropocentric, biocentric, and ecocentric approaches that will shape the future of aviation and aerospace development.
AeSI also plays a major role in skill development, offering certifications, expert lectures, and technology workshops that cover avionics, composites, predictive maintenance, and modern quality systems. Equally important is our effort to build grassroots-level technical awareness through school outreach, innovation programs, and hands-on industry interactions.
However, to truly scale these efforts across the country, professional bodies like AeSI need stronger government support, particularly in terms of funding and dedicated infrastructure. With focused support, AeSI can significantly expand its capability to nurture skilled, future-ready aerospace talent and contribute meaningfully to India’s strategic goals.
4. In high-risk naval aviation missions with aircraft like Tejas, unexpected system problems can appear anytime. Can you share a moment when quick thinking and solid training helped avoid major issues?
In aviation, incidents never happen because of one single factor. They occur when multiple small issues silently accumulate over time, and eventually, the system reaches its elastic limit. That’s exactly why our training teaches us to treat every minor anomaly with respect.
I remember a situation during my tenure on IL38 Sea Dragon just prior dispatch to Russia. Just before a sortie, we noticed a subtle but unusual indication in a critical onboard system. On its own, it didn’t look alarming nothing that would automatically ground the aircraft. But experience tells you that such small deviations often sit at the end of a long chain of unnoticed factors.
We immediately applied our standard safety mindset: pause, reassess, and investigate. Within minutes, our team traced the issue to a sensor feedback inconsistency which, under high-stress manoeuvres, could have escalated into a far more serious in-flight emergency. By acting early, we broke the chain before it could reach that ‘elastic limit.’ It reinforced a fundamental lesson: quick thinking, teamwork, and disciplined training prevent accidents long before they happen.
5. Underwater and maritime operations often face limited visibility, sensor interference, unpredictable conditions, and even communication breakdowns. Could you describe an example where these challenges demanded rapid problem-solving to prevent operational disruption?
In maritime operations, uncertainty is part of the environment visibility drops suddenly, sensors experience noise, and communication links can become unreliable. During one underwater inspection task, our team began receiving inconsistent sonar returns while simultaneously losing stable communication with the surface vessel. In those moments, you immediately realise how quickly small issues can cascade.
We shifted into a conservative mode, stabilised the platform, and cross-verified the data using backup sensors. Soon, we identified the root cause: a sudden tidal-driven surge of suspended sediment. If we had continued without reassessing, it could have compromised positional accuracy or even damaged the equipment.
What this incident highlighted was the need for distributed IoT support systems smart buoys, underwater sensor nodes, and real-time environmental monitors. These IoT-enabled devices provide continuous data on turbidity, tidal shifts, underwater currents, and communication health. If such IoT feeds were integrated into the mission, the sediment surge could have been predicted or at least flagged earlier.
6. From your perspective, which IoT or sensor-based technologies in naval operations require urgent improvement or innovation to enhance efficiency and safety?
In naval operations, IoT and sensor technologies are becoming mission-critical, but several areas demand urgent innovation. First, we need far more persistent maritime domain awareness. Smarter buoys, seabed sensors, and underwater IoT grids should deliver continuous data on tides, turbidity, currents, and vessel activity. Today’s systems work, but their endurance, range, and integration are still limited.
Second, communication resilience remains a major gap especially underwater. We need reliable acoustic modems, optical links, and mesh-based IoT networks to maintain connectivity even in poor visibility or high-noise environments. These devices are essential not just for communication, but for safety, mission control, and emergency response.
Third, predictive maintenance sensors ie vibration, thermal, structural health; must advance so ships, aircraft, and support systems can identify failures before they happen, reducing downtime and enhancing mission readiness.
Finally, we need stronger AI-enabled sensor fusion platforms, and IoT tools that also support sustainability monitoring of marine ecology, emissions, and environmental impact in real time.
7. Aircraft and naval equipment maintenance is vital for mission readiness. From your experience, how can IoT-enabled monitoring, predictive analytics, and real-time data help prevent equipment failures, reduce human error, and support better decision-making during critical naval and aviation operations?
While I cannot divulge any specific information on missions or operations, I can certainly speak in general terms aboutair operations and maintenance practices.
IoT-enabled monitoring is fundamentally changing how we look at the health of aircraft and support equipment. Smart sensors provide continuous real-time data on vibration, temperature, pressure, structural loads, and system performance. When this data is analysed through predictive analytics, it helps identify small anomalies long before they accumulate into a major failure. In aviation, this early detection is critical because incidents are rarely caused by a single factor they occur when multiple small issues build up over time.
IoT systems also reduce human error by shifting from subjective assessments to data-backed insights. Instead of waiting for a fault to appear, maintainers receive alerts based on trends, patterns, and thresholds.
And at the operational level, real-time dashboards give aircrew and decision-makers a much clearer picture of equipment health and environmental conditions, supporting safer and more informed judgement.
Overall, IoT brings predictability, precision, and proactive maintenance; three things that significantly enhance safety and readiness in air operations.
Through an Expert’s Lens
Reflecting on these experiences, Commander Mandeep Singh emphasizes a clear message: in complex maritime and air operations, safety and readiness rely heavily on early awareness, reliable data, and a disciplined response. He points to the importance of distributed IoT systems such as smart buoys, underwater sensors, and real-time environmental monitoring in identifying risks early and improving situational understanding before challenges escalate. In this context, emerging deep-tech startups like Gyrfalcon IntelliEdge Solutions, which develops smart buoys to measure key oceanographic parameters, illustrate how focused sensing technologies are beginning to address these on-ground needs. Together, operational insight and targeted sensing solutions are shaping a more informed and resilient maritime ecosystem.
Technical Content & Editor-in-Chief, IoT Watch
Soumya Mukthavaram
