samlove
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Agra: After successfully landing French Dassault Mirage 2000 bombers on Yamuna Expressway in May, IAF now plans to use such strips and roads to land heavy lift transport and refueling aircraft, according to officials.
The revelation was made ahead of Air Force Day by Air Commodore S Srinivasan, who is the in-charge of Asia's biggest air base, Kheria whose total asset value is more than $10 billion. Speaking to TOI, Commodore Srinivasan said, "The IAF has been using unpaved roads for making emergency landings, but with the successful landing of Mirage 2000 on Yamuna Expressway we are now focusing on highways and expressway stretches (patches) which can serve us as emergency airstrip in case enemy air power damages our air bases." He added that in future, most variants of IAF aircraft including heavy lift transport and refueling aircraft will land and take off on motor roads to test how practical and feasible the concept is.
Kheria airbase which now primarily serves as hub of refueling and reconnaissance aircraft fitted with AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System), has more than three dozen aircraft such as IL-76, IL-78, AN-32 and C-130J which the IAF wants to test on Indian roads. Currently, newly inducted Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules, a four-engine turboprop multi-role military transport aircraft and Boeing C-17 Globemaster III, another heavy duty transport aircraft has given IAF the capability to land on any terrain in any conditions.
As per sources, probably by next year after the completion of 306 km long Agra-Lucknow Expressway, several heavy-duty aircraft will be landing with 90 tonnes of load to simulate warlike emergency landing.
