Srinagar: The Indian Air Force during the past 48 hours mounted IL-76 sorties and pressed into action two AN-32 aircraft to airlift National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams and equipment from Bhatinda to Srinagar and Jammu Air Force bases, a defence spokesperson said in Udhampur on Saturday.
IAF spokesman S.D Goswami said the HQ Western Air Command has opened a disaster monitoring cell to coordinate the efforts by all its bases in Srinagar, Udhampur, Jammu and Sarsawa apart from fixed wing effort from other bases. “The IAF Command has alerted all its bases to a high state of readiness to respond to the emerging situation,” he added.
On Saturday, bad weather in the Valley did not permit launch of helicopter effort as had been planned earlier. However, six sorties by Mi-17 IV and Mi 17 V-5 were launched from IAF’s Jammu station and 108 personnel including their three children were evacuated and moved to safer areas. “Many of them were stranded on rooft-ops, marooned in floods,” the spokesman said.
