MISSAMARI: The Indian Army has added a major aviation capability to the force with a new Aviation Brigade raised to look after the troops posted along the Line of Actual Control with Arunachal Pradesh.
Confirming the development a source said, “Aviation Brigade with its three Squadrons was raised in March this year. It operates Advanced Light Helicopters, Cheetah and Heron Mk1 (Remotely Piloted Aircraft.” The Brigade operates from Missamari Army Aviation Base. Herons are used for surveillance and reconnaissance.
Lt Col Amit Dadhwal of the Corps of Army Aviation said the Corps has evolved from a simple fixed-wing aircraft with basic avionics to state-of-the-art equipment that we have in the rotary platforms today in the form of Cheetah, Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH), ALH Weaponised System Integrated and Light Combat Helicopters.
“These Rotary Wing platforms provide us and our leaders and commanders a plethora of capabilities so that we can achieve success in all kinds of operations,” added Lt Col Dadhwal.
Army Aviation plays a very crucial role both in peace and combat times. “The helicopters carry troops in full battle loads in any kind of treacherous terrain in any kind of weather conditions and are used for Casualty evacuations, induction and de-induction.”
India shares 1346 km long LAC with China along the Eastern Sector.
The Indian Army Chief had expressed worry about the troop buildup on the Chinese side and had said that India is ready to handle any situation. “Yes, it is a matter of concern that the large-scale build-up has occurred and continues to be in place, and to sustain that kind of a build-up, there has been an equal amount of infrastructure development on the Chinese side,” Gen Naravane said at a media conclave.
“So, it means that they (PLA) are there to stay. We are keeping a close watch on all these developments, but if they are there to stay, we are there to stay too,” he said.
Indian Army and Chinese PLA troops have been locked in a tense standoff position along Eastern Ladakh since May 2020. There have been 13 rounds of Corps Commander Level talks with standoff remaining unresolved at Hot Spring. Also, the long-term standoff continues at Depsang and Demchok. Meanwhile, the Chinese troops transgressed at multiple points in the recent past which includes that in Uttarakhand at Barahoti.