IAF to operationalise advanced landing ground at Arunachal tip
17 Nov 2011
New Delhi: India is "fully re-activating" an advanced landing ground (ALG) in Arunachal Pradesh located at Vijaynagar, which is the last township in Arunachal Pradesh at the tri-junction of the Myanmar –China border.
Defence ministry sources said the "upgraded" Vijayanagar ALG, at the tri-junction of India, China and Myanmar in the Changlang district of Arunachal, is likely to be inaugurated on Friday, with the landing of an AN-32 medium-lift aircraft.
"The runway and other facilities have been upgraded to ensure more types of aircraft can operate from there," said a source.
The upgrade and operationalisation of the airfield comes with India re-activating disused airfields all along the Line of Actual Control with China. Over the last couple of years it has hastened to activate its eastern Ladakh ALGs like Nyoma, Daulat Beg Oldi and Fukche.
Nyoma, located just 23-km from the Line of Actual Control with China at an altitude of 13,300-feet in Ladakh is to be converted into a full-fledged airbase with a 12,000-feet runway capable of handling fighters as well as transport aircraft.
This, according to the new IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne will ensure India got "both defensive and offensive options" at the ALG.