In a gesture to appreciate and reward the efforts of the public during the search operation of the AN-32 aircraft that crash-landed in Arunachal Pradesh on June 3, this year, the Indian Air Force on Wednesday felicitated five mountaineers and three senior citizens for their inputs during the search operation. 

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Felicitating and Commending the efforts

Air Marshal RD Mathur, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Air Command, visited Along in Arunachal Pradesh on Wednesday to felicitate, commend and distribute the award of Rs 5 lakh to civilian personnel in a ceremony organised at Along ALG. He also commended the five mountaineers including the team leader, Taka Tamut and three village seniors from Payum, Gasheng and Gatte for providing assistance in locating the crash site and helping in the recovery of the mortal remains and other equipment from the crash site. The Air Marshal disbursed the amount of Rs 5 Lakh to acknowledge the valuable contribution of the local administration and other civilian personnel in the search for the ill-fated AN-32 aircraft. Out of this amount, Rs 1.5 Lakh was given to Tadut Tachung for providing information that helped the IAF locate the crash site. Earlier in the day, the Air Marshal along with the GOC-in-C Eastern Command of the Indian Army jointly inaugurated the Vijaynagar ALG in Arunachal Pradesh. 

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The Missing AN-32

It may be mentioned that the AN-32 went missing after it took off from Jorhat during a routine air logistics sortie to Menchuka Advance Landing Ground on June 3. The aircraft crashed in an isolated place near Gatte village in Arunachal Pradesh. It took 8 days to locate the wreckage. After the extensive operation and close lead provided by the local people on June 11, the crash site was located by a Mi17 helicopter. The crash had resulted in the loss of life of all the 13 personnel on board. The mortal remains were recovered to the ALG at Along by June 19 with valuable assistance from the Army, the state administration and local inhabitants.

The terrain and inclement weather posed a major challenge during the search operation. Arunachal Pradesh is prone to air crash with many similar incidents reported in the past. During World War II, many aircraft crashed I'm this part many of whose wreckages are yet to be located.

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