India and the United States have concluded the fifth edition of Exercise Tiger Triumph 2026, their bilateral tri-service humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise, with a closing ceremony at Visakhapatnam on 5 November 2026.
The exercise, conducted from 31 October to 5 November, comprised a Staff Exercise and a Tabletop Exercise, with personnel from the armed forces of both countries participating, according to a Press Information Bureau release from India’s Ministry of Defence. It focused on enhancing interoperability and strengthening mutual understanding in planning and conducting combined HADR operations, with particular emphasis on joint amphibious operations.
Planning, not a live at-sea drill
This year’s edition was a command-post style exercise rather than a live at-sea drill. It featured integrated operational planning, subject-matter expert exchanges on cyber and medical capabilities, and a tabletop exercise to strengthen the two forces’ preparedness and coordination for joint amphibious disaster-relief missions, the Indian Navy said. The format was designed to refine joint planning, interoperability and all-domain command-and-control synchronisation between Indian and US forces.
The closing ceremony was attended by Rear Admiral Vishal Bishnoi, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet of the Indian Navy, and Rear Admiral Joaquin J. Martinez de Pinillos, Vice Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, along with senior officers and dignitaries from both sides. Rear Admiral Martinez de Pinillos said the drill reinforced the US–India partnership and joint readiness across the Indo-Pacific.
Five editions in, a fixture of the partnership
First conducted in 2019, Exercise Tiger Triumph has emerged as an important component of India–US defence cooperation, bringing together the three services of both countries — army, navy and air force — to improve preparedness for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions. Visakhapatnam, home to the Eastern Naval Command, has hosted all five editions.
The 2026 edition comes as the two countries deepen military cooperation across the Indo-Pacific, and as disaster relief becomes a larger part of their joint planning — from cyclones and floods to earthquakes and tsunamis. The exercise’s focus on amphibious HADR operations reflects a shared assessment that the next major test of the partnership may not be a war, but a natural disaster requiring both militaries to move people, supplies and medical care quickly across the region.
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