IAF to conduct fighter jet operations from north-east and Bengal airports
New Delhi: The Indian Air Force is going to operate the heavy multirole Sukhoi-30MKIs and the advanced trainer Hawk Mk. 132 from four airports in the north-east and West Bengal in order to get pilots accustomed to civilian operators.
The fighter jet operations will be conducted in Dimapur, Imphal, Guwahati, Pasighat, Andal and Kolkata, where the jets will land and take off.
The IAF has been strengthening its capability to operate from unusual locations across India and has identified nearly a dozen highways that are wide and smooth enough for fighter jets to land and take off in case of natural calamities and war.
The exercise will be conducted by the Eastern Air Command based in Meghalaya's capital Shillong in two phases from Oct 16 to 19 and Oct 29 to Nov 1.
The aim of the exercise, which is routinely carried out, is to strengthen air operations from dispersed locations in case of hostilities. The pilots and the support crew will work to familiarise themselves with fighter operations from these airports.
The aim of the exercise is to strengthen fighter jet operations from airports in case of emergencies.
In 2015, IAF had successfully tested Yamuna expressway near Delhi as an unconventional airfield, when its Mirage 2000 landed there.
In Nov 2016, six Sukhoi-30MKIs landed on the 3.3-km stretch of the Lucknow-Agra expressway.
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