Linked by Air

Rohan Ramesh | Bengaluru

The Indian armed forces operate in some of the toughest terrain anywhere in the world. The road infrastructure across the country is abominable, and in border areas, it is worse. In fact, so bad that a separate organisation called Border Roads Organisation (BRO) had to be created. The army has to operate in icy wastes of Siachen, and in event of a conflict - in the salty marshes of Gujarat, the deserts of Rajasthan and in the plains of Punjab, where on either side the elaborate canal system makes logistics a nightmare. Quick transport of troops from bases to forward positions poses a major challenge. In that backdrop, air transport becomes crucial.

C-17 Globemaster III in Leh

For militaries the world over, air transport or air lift of troops, both in peacetime as well as during war is a major challenge. Battles can be won or lost for delay in injection of troops at the appropriate time, or failure of air forces to keep up supplies to forward lines. At Stalingrad, Dien Bien Phu and in the battle for East Pakistan, the failure of air forces to supply troops led to monumental defeats.

In peace time, too, to maintain operational readiness, air transport is critically important. For instance, without air lifting supplies, holding on to Kargil is virtually untenable. Air transport is crucial for medical evacuation, in reaching supplies to troops in remote locations which are difficult to reach by land routes, and to transport urgently needed supplies in hostile weather.

Airlift vehicles are among the most important part of any air force, as well as aviation arms of armies and navies. These could be large heavy-lifting fixed wing aircraft such as Boeing C-17 Globemasters, Lockheed-Martin C130J Super Hercules, besides the venerable IL-76s and An-32s, that have met the needs of the Indian Air Force (IAF) for decades. But super-lifters are not limited to fixed-wing aircraft. Helicopters, too, are favoured for similar duties, but on a smal