Landing On Highways

An efficiently managed model wherein designated landing strips on highways in the proximity of operational airbases are available during the war will have a force multiplier effect.

- B.K. Pandey (Retd)

NOVEMBER 21, 2016, WAS indeed a red-letter day not only for the Indian Air Force (IAF), but for the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) too, as it was on this day that it chose to inaugurate in grand style and in a manner that was unique, the newly built 302-km-long greenfield expressway, India’s longest six-lane highway that connects the historic city of Agra with the state capital Lucknow. The event is regarded as unique as a highway which is normally meant for vehicles to ply on, was inaugurated by a fleet of six combat jets of the IAF! Nowhere in the world has the commissioning of infrastructure for surface transport ever been carried out by the flying machines!

THE IAF TO THE FORE

Three Mirage 2000 and three Sukhoi-30MKI fighter aircraft of the IAF carried out simulated landings on the 3.3-km stretch of the highway that is designed to serve as a runway for landing of military aircraft during war in case the runways at the IAF airfields in the vicinity are bombed by enemy aircraft and put out of action. This portion of the Agra-Lucknow expressway has been specially constructed to serve as a runway for military aircraft to operate from. It has a reinforced concrete surface of appropriate strength and with the required markings to guide fighter aircraft during landing and take-off. The technical aspects of the expressway meant to serve as a runway were overseen by the IAF so as to create the appropriate facilities and conditions for it to operate its fleet of combat or transport aircraft when required during war if the conditions so demand.