IAF fighter aircrafts conduct trial run on airstrip ahead of Purvanchal Expressway inauguration

The fighter aircraft that participated in the touchdown drill was Jaguar. On the occasion, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath reviewed the preparedness.   

Days ahead of the formal inauguration of Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh, the Indian Air Force's three fighter aircraft conducted a trial run on its airstrip in Sultanpur. The fighter aircraft that participated in the touchdown drill was Jaguar. On the occasion, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath reviewed the preparedness.  According to an official, the inauguration ceremony was set to be a grand event with several Indian Air Force's fighter jets and transport aircraft to land on the airstrip developed to deal with a war-like crisis and carry out HADR mission. 

The Purvanchal Expressway, which connects Western and eastern Uttar Pradesh, is a 340-km-long expressway, will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 16. The cost incurred on the project stands at Rs 42,000 crore. Connecting Lucknow to Mirzapur, it will reduce the travel time between the two cities by four hours. The expressway passes through Barabanki, Amethi, Sultanpur, Faizabad, Ambedkar Nagar, Azamgarh and Mau.

Notably, Uttar Pradesh is the first state in the country to have two expressway-based airstrips. The one on the Lucknow-Agra Expressway and the other on the Purvanchal Expressway. Expressway airstrips are designed to let fighter jets land and take off in an emergency. Previously, the Indian Air Force investigated the Yamuna Expressway and the Agra Expressway. The government of Uttar Pradesh is attempting to link the whole northern region of the nation via expressways. The Indian Air Force's Hindon and Agra airbases will be able to utilise the runways of all three expressways if necessary.

In September, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister for Road Transport and Highway Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the emergency landing airstrip on the national highway in Rajasthan's Barmer. So far, 12 highways that have been approved are in different states of the country and would enable the landing of military planes in emergencies.