Missing IAF AN-32 Yet To Be Traced, Search Operation Resumes

Guwahati, June 10, 2019:

The missing Indian Air Force AN-32 is yet to be traced even after a week.

Search operation for missing Indian Air Force AN-32 resumed again as the weather clears up today.

Two Mi-17 aircrafts of the Indian Air Force and ALH helicopters of the Indian Army have been pressed into service to locate the missing aircraft.

The AN-32 Transporter aircraft of Indian Air Force went missing at Arunachal Pradesh on June 3. The aircraft took off at around 1 pm from Jorhat district in Assam with 13 defence personnel.

Also Read: Air Force Announces Rs 5 lakh Reward for Information on Missing AN-32 Aircraft

On June 3, the aircraft had got airborne from IAF’s Jorhat Airbase in Assam for Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in the West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. Indian Air Force launched a massive search operation to trace the whereabouts of the aircraft soon after it was established that it did not reach its destination within the stipulated time.

Resources from various agencies, including ISRO, were brought into the operation to enhance its effectiveness. The area of search is mountainous and heavily forested with thick undergrowth.

The weather in the area has been inclement with low clouds and rain during most hours. Combined with the inhospitable terrain, the weather has posed serious challenges to aerial search operations.

Indian Air Force has increased the deployment of its helicopters and transport aircraft and has expanded the search area significantly since the beginning of the operations.

More and more area is being covered by airborne sensors and satellites and the imaging is being followed-up by close analysis of the data for its synergistic amalgamation in the search operations.