NEW DELHI: In a demonstration of its expanding operational capabilities, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said it has successfully conducted a night-landing of C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft at the high-altitude Kargil airstrip.
“In a first, an IAF C-130 J aircraft recently carried out a night landing at the Kargil airstrip,” the IAF wrote on X. It is a significant achievement given that Kargil airstrip is situated at an altitude of 2,927 metres above sea level and is surrounded by hills and has a unidirectional approach.
To land the aircraft on the dark airstrip, the crew used night vision goggles. They also employed terrain masking en route, a technique used to avoid detection by enemy radars. The airstrip lies close to the Line of Control (LoC) in the Union Territory of Ladakh. It is situated near the Srinagar-Leh Highway, which was the focus of the Pakistan troops during the 1999 Kargil War.
This training exercise was to test the special operations launch capability at night. It is significant for time-critical operational mobilization of troops and equipment to carry out special operations and also in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Garud commandos on board
The transport aircraft carried elite Garud commandos on board who were on a training mission. “The exercise also dovetailed a training mission of the Garuds,” the IAF wrote on X