LUCKNOW: In a significant boost to India’s defence capabilities, the Indian Air Force (IAF) conducted a powerful display of fighter jet operations on a newly constructed 3.5-kilometre airstrip along the Ganga Expressway in Peeru village, Jalalabad tehsil of Shahjahanpur district, marking a major milestone in military preparedness amid heightened security concerns.
It is the first airstrip on any expressway in the country equipped to handle both day and night landings of fighter jets with the help of advanced lighting and navigation systems installed on-site.
The airstrip is part of the around 594-kilometre-long Ganga Expressway connecting Meerut to Prayagraj. With 85 per cent of the expressway construction already completed, this airstrip is the fourth operational stretch on a UP Expressway designed for Indian Air Force operations. The other three facilities are there on the Agra-Lucknow, Purvanchal, and Bundelkhand Expressways.
However, the one on Ganga Expressway is the first among them to support night operations.
The IAF conduct fighter jet exercises at the Shahjahanpur airstrip in two phases. The drills featured aircraft like the Rafale, Sukhoi-30 MKI, Mirage-2000, MiG-29, Jaguar, C-130J Super Hercules, AN-32 transport aircraft, and MI-17 V5 helicopters.
The IAF fighter jets conducted flypasts over the expressway as part of a broader exercise designed to assess the viability of the facility as an alternative runway in the event of war or national emergencies.
Take-off and landing drills were carried out throughout the day and late into the evening to test the airstrip's full operational spectrum, including its night capabilities, showing the preparedness of IAF’s night campaigns.
The airstrip has been developed using specially engineered materials to bear the weight and pressure of heavy-duty military aircraft. It features precision approach lighting, reinforced pavement strength, and CAT II Instrument Landing System (ILS) technology to ensure safe operations in low-visibility or night-time conditions.
The Indian Air Force has emphasised that this strip not only enhances the country's operational readiness but also strengthens its disaster response capacity and rapid deployment capability.
However, the IAF exercise came at a time of heightened security concerns, as the country is contemplating a potential action in the wake of the recent Pahalgam terror attack which claimed 26 innocent lives on April 22.
To ensure security and crowd management during the high-profile event, 250 CCTV cameras were installed on either side of the airstrip. Public representatives, senior officials, dignitaries, and over 500 schoolchildren witnessed the aerial display.
The state government intends to dedicate the Ganga Expressway to the nation by November this year. “This Expressway will go a long way not only in giving impetus to the economic and geographical growth of the state but also it will be established as a historic step towards the national security,” said an official spokesman.