NEW DELHI :
FOR THE first time, a C-130J
Super Hercules transport
aircraft of the Indian Air
Force (IAF) carried out a
night landing at the highaltitude Kargil advanced
landing ground near the
Line of Control (LoC) with
Pakistan.
The night landing of the
tactical lift aircraft with the
elite Garud commandos on
board at the Kargil airstrip
demonstrated the IAF’s operational capabilities in
the strategically crucial sector, people familiar with the
matter said.
The night landing was carried out recently.
While IAF aircraft have
operated fromthe advanced
landing ground before,itwas
the firsttime that a transport
plane made a night landing.
“Inafirst, an IAF C-130 J
aircraft recently carried out
a night landing at the Kargil
airstrip. Employing terrain
masking enroute, the exercise also dovetailed a training mission of the Garuds,”
the IAFsaidon‘X’.The Kargil
airstrip is located at an altitude of around 10,500 feet.
The Defence Ministry has
also been focusing on
enhancing infrastructure at
almost all airfields along the
Line of Actual Control(LAC),
including the Advanced
Landing Grounds (ALGs) as
per operational requirements. It is especially boosting infrastructure at the
Daulat Beg Oldi Advanced
Landing Ground (ALG) as
well as the Nyoma airstrip.
The Daulat Beg Oldi ALG
is located close to the LAC at
an altitude of 16,700 feet and
is known as the highest airfield in the world.
Temperatures in Daulat Beg
Oldi drop up to minus 40
degrees Celsius duringharsh
winter months. The Nyoma
airfield is located at a height
of around 13,000 feet.