mkb95
FULL MEMBER
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2015
- Messages
- 1,127
- Reaction score
- -1
- Country
- Location
With another squadron of Mig-27MK based at Air Force Station Hasimara in north Bengal getting number-plated, the Indian Air Force (IAF) is now at least 10 squadrons less than what is ideally required to counter strikes from both the western and eastern sectors together. Number-plating is the official name for decommissioning of a squadron in the IAF.
The latest squadron to go was the celebrated 18 Squadron, also known as the 'Flying Bullets'. Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon, the only Param Vir Chakra (PVC) awardee in the IAF belonged to this squadron that earned the sobriquet of 'Defenders of the Kashmir Valley' by being the first to land and operate from Srinagar. In November, 2015, nearly 44 years after Sekhon received the PVC posthumously, the 18 Squadron received the Presidential Standard at Hasimara. IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha had then said that one of the squadrons based at Hasimara would be number-plated in the days to come.
On Friday, Air Marshal C Hari Kumar, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Air Command, confirmed at Panagarh that the squadron has been number-plated. He also said that the IAF realizes the strategic location of Hasimara and is on the lookout for an appropriate replacement for the Mig-27 aircraft for the 18 Squadron.
"We do have plans to base other aircraft in Hasimara, given its strategic location. However, details can't be divulged at the moment," Hari Kumar said.
With the indigenous Tejas and French Rafale yet to be inducted, the only option for the IAF seems to be a squadron of Su-30MKI for Hasimara. For some time now, the IAF has maintained that it would no longer shop for specialized aircraft like the Mig-27 that specializes in ground attack. It is on the lookout for multi-role fighters. What makes Hasimara so crucial is its proximity to Bhutan. The Chumbi Valley region, a tri-junction between Bhutan, India and China, has always been a matter of concern for defence analysts in this country. Should China attempt to sweep across Bhutan and cut off the Siliguri corridor and the northeastern states from the rest of the country, Hasimara is in the best position to intervene.
source- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...r-plated-at-Hasimara/articleshow/51846931.cms
