Rajnath, Gadkari inaugurate emergency landing strip for IAF planes on national highway in Barmer


Team Udayavani, Sep 9, 2021, 12:22 PM IST

 

Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari inaugurated an emergency landing strip at Satta-Gandhav stretch on National Highway 925 here on Thursday for Indian Air Force (IAF) planes.

A Hercules C-130J plane of the IAF, carrying the two ministers and Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat, conducted a mock emergency landing on the national highway on Thursday. NH-925 is India’s first national highway to be used for emergency landing of IAF aircraft.

The two ministers also witnessed multiple aircraft operations on the emergency landing facility (ELF) of NH-295 on Thursday.

Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jet also conducted a mock emergency landing at the ELF in front of the two ministers.

An-32 military transport aircraft and Mi-17v5 helicopter of the IAF also landed at the ELF, showing its complete operational readiness to act as an auxiliary military airbase.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has developed the 3-km section of Satta-Gandhav stretch of NH-925 as an ELF for the IAF. In October 2017, fighter jets and transport planes of the IAF had conducted mock landings on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway to show that such highways can be used by the IAF planes for landing in case of an emergency.

The Lucknow-Agra Expressway, which is not a national highway, comes under the Uttar Pradesh government.

Officials told PTI a total of 27 other highways, apart from the one in Barmer, are being currently studied jointly by the IAF and the NHAI to see if emergency landing strips can be developed on them.

The emergency landing strip, which was inaugurated on Thursday, is part of newly developed two-lane paved shoulder of Gagariya-Bakhasar and Satta-Gandhav section having total length of 196.97 km and costing Rs 765.52 crore under the Bharatmala Pariyojana. This highway project will improve connectivity between villages of Barmer and Jalore districts located on the international border.

Apart from the emergency landing strip, three helipads (size 100×30 metres each) have been constructed in Kundanpura, Singhania and Bakhasar villages under this project, according to the requirements of the IAF and the Indian Army.

The ELF and three helipads have been developed so as to strengthen the security network on the western international border of the country.

During normal time, the ELF will be used for smooth flow of road traffic and during the operations of ELF for the IAF, the service road will be used for smooth flow of road traffic.

The ELF was constructed in 19 months. The work commenced in July 2019 and was completed in January 2021

The work was carried out by GHV India Pvt Ltd under the supervision of the IAF and the NHAI.

Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.

Top News

Kinnigoli: Truck carrying red stone collides with Auto-Rickshaw; driver injured

UP govt to install 150,000 toilets for Maha Kumbh, set up paying guest facilities

Kavoor Police arrest two notorious cattle thieves

Udupi: Unidentified body found near Bailkere’s Vidhyodaya School

Sexual harassment case cannot be closed on basis of compromise between parties: SC

MLC Ivan D’Souza defends CM Siddaramaiah’s Lokayukta appearance, criticizes BJP’s ‘Drama’ claims

Ranji Trophy: Shreyas Iyer’s majestic 233 puts Mumbai in complete command against Odisha

Related Articles More

Felling of trees: What is being done to restore Delhi Ridge? SC asks DDA

UP govt to install 150,000 toilets for Maha Kumbh, set up paying guest facilities

Sexual harassment case cannot be closed on basis of compromise between parties: SC

BJP slams Rahul Gandhi over his recent opinion piece, calls it ‘laughable’

I’m not anti-business, I’m anti-monopoly: Rahul

MUST WATCH

Gho Pooja in Deepavali Festival

Melukote Deepavali

Ganapathi Co-operative Society Ltd

Udayavani Chinnara Banna 2024

Annapoorna Aahar | Food Places In Mysore


Latest Additions

Felling of trees: What is being done to restore Delhi Ridge? SC asks DDA

Kinnigoli: Truck carrying red stone collides with Auto-Rickshaw; driver injured

UP govt to install 150,000 toilets for Maha Kumbh, set up paying guest facilities

Kavoor Police arrest two notorious cattle thieves

Udupi: Unidentified body found near Bailkere’s Vidhyodaya School

Thanks for visiting Udayavani

You seem to have an Ad Blocker on.
To continue reading, please turn it off or whitelist Udayavani.