Helicopters of war are fearsome machines. Nothing can stop a Chinook, not even the pandemic. Taking a small yellow helicopter from the Sahastradhara helipad to the army base at Gauchar to cover a covert operation involving CH-47 Chinook was like getting on a bicycle to learn you are riding a spaceship. My yellow transport dropped me at Rudraprayag, from where I took a taxi to Gauchar where the Chinook was supposed to arrive the next day.
In the backdrop of the Himalayas, I did a recce of the landing pad premises beforehand so that I could get perfect shots of the heaviest lifting Western helicopter in the world. The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is an advanced multi-mission helicopter, efficacious both in combat and humanitarian missions. It can carry heavy payloads of troops to high altitudes, making it ideal for high Himalayan operations. I almost felt pity for the Chinese soldiers across the border.
The next morning, in the excitement of waiting for the sky monster to land, I did not feel the biting chill of the mountain wind. After half an hour or so came a throttling sound from afar. As I saw the beast appear and hover above me, a black object of strength and size against the glare of the sun, its great rotor blades whipping the air like some prehistoric beast, I could imagine the terror of the enemy and the relief of the Indian Army.
For two days it showed off its machine muscle, carrying heavy machinery to Kedarnath for the development of the area and the border zones. From Gauchar, it was Kedarnath Valley next, where Operation Chinook continued. The temperature was minus two. Photography was dangerous as there was limited space for such a monstrous helicopter to manoeuvre since the flash floods have wrecked the area. But the sight of the massive flying machine suspended against the background of Kedarnath mountain as it balanced its load, made me aware of how these huge war machines determine the outcome of victory and defeat.
In 2020, the Indian Air Force received 15 CH-47F(I) Chinook helicopters it had ordered from Boeing.