The people in many areas of the provisional state capital came out of their houses on Tuesday afternoon when fighter planes of Indian Air Force (IAF) thundered above their heads in the sky. The fighters flew low and were in a dog fight position. No official information about the purpose of the drill by IAF was received till late evening. It is speculated that the sorties of the fighters could be part of the preparation for the Passing out Parade (PoP) scheduled on December 12.
Some experts also linked the fly past of the fighters with increased activity of IAF on the northern front. In recent times the pilots of IAF have made successful landings of heavy duty transport aircraft AN 32 at Chinyalisaur air strip located in the border district of Uttarkashi. In 2018, the IAF had conducted a massive exercise ‘Operation Gagan Shakti’ in the area.
Amid tension along LAC with a hostile China, the IAF is planning to strengthen its position in Uttarakhand which shares a boundary with both China and Nepal. In September this year, the Chief of Central Air Command Air Marshal Rajesh Kumar had met chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and sought land for setting up facilities that will help the IAF in carrying out its activities in the border areas.
Wednesday, 09 December 2020 | PNS | Dehradun
