How many threads like these are we going to have?
I suppose the Sino-Indian "future war" scenario has been debated to death, so let's ignore that and look at other elements.
In terms of power projection, India and China are about the same. In the 1988 Operation Cactus, the IAF proved that it was capable of long-range military operations. With an equally large transport a/c fleet, China should also be capable of such an operation, although they have yet to implement it in practice. Currently, the backbone of India's transport a/c fleet are the 100-odd An-32s, with the 24 Il-76s forming the primary instrument of power projection. The backbone of China's transport a/c are 100-odd Y-8s (copied An-12s) supported by 20 Il-76s. At present, we can say that the IAF and PLAAF are
roughly equal in terms of their airlift capability.
The future of India's transport a/c lies in the American C-130 and C-17 airlifters, as well as the Indo-Russian MRTA. These will replace the aging An-32s in the future. The future of China's transport fleet appears to be the Shaanxi Y-9, which is currently under development and is said to be roughly equivalent to the C-130 in capability.
In conclusion, we can say that the military transport aviation is one area where the IAF has placed much importance, and both India and China have substantial airlift capabilities.
In terms of naval forces, the comparison becomes more difficult due to the different doctrines of the IN and PLAN. The PLAN uses a huge fleet of patrol craft to defend their coastline, while their subs conduct (in theory anyway) most of the blue-water operations. The IN appears to place much more emphasis on surface combat and surface ASW capabilities than subsurface compact capabilities, and, unlike the PLAN, is organized around aircraft carriers.
Looking at PLANs submarine fleet, the Romeos and Mings are both outdated designs from the 50s, with the Kilos, Songs, and Yuans forming the basis of the conventional sub fleet. The IN also use the Kilos as the basis of their sub fleet (Sindhugosh class). The futre of the PLAN's attack subs seems to be the Yuan class, while for the IN it is the Scorpene class. Overall, the
PLAN has a decisive edge over the IN in terms of subsurface combat capabilities, due to China's Soviet-inspired naval doctrine.
The other form of naval power projection are the aircraft carriers. The IN, starting in 1947 itself, has called for a navy based on 3-4 aircraft carrier groups. Unfortunately, this was never realized due to limited funds. However, the IN still operated INS Vikrant for many decades, and the INS Viraat after that. This has given the IN valuable experience in carrier operations and maintenance, which the PLAN lacks. Furthermore, India is currently in the process of acquiring INS Vikramaditya and building INS Vikrant II, with INS Vishaal (IAC-2) to follow soon afterwards. This would give India a three carrier force by 2020, thus realizing the IN's dream.
In comparison, the Chinese are currently refitting the Varyag as a trainer vessel to master carrier take-off and landing, with reports of indigenous carriers also under construction. Regardless, the
area of aircraft carriers will be one that India dominates for the forseeable future, due primarily to the IN's unique doctrine.
