IAF’s Apache attack helicopter makes emergency landing near Pathankot

An Apache attack helicopter of the Indian Air Force made a precautionary landing in the fields near Pathankot on Friday afternoon. This is the third such incident involving this type of helicopter in the past about a year.

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The helicopter landed in the field adjacent to Nangalpur village in Pathankot district, following an emergency warning in the cockpit. Local administration officials said that there was no damage to property on ground or injury to any person in the incident. The two-man crew is also said to be safe.

IAF personnel from the Pathankot airbase, where the Apache helicopters are based, reached the spot to examine the stranded helicopter and take remedial action.

Last week, an Apache had made an emergency landing in the fields near Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh during a routine training sortie. After intensive checks on ground, the helicopter was then flown the nearby Sarsawa airbase.

In April last year, an Apache on an operational mission was badly damaged while carrying out a precautionary landing near Khardung La, the world’s second highest motorable pass, in Ladakh. The rugged terrain of the area made for a hard landing and weeks later the helicopter was evacuated from the site by road on trailer.

The IAF had inducted the AH-64 Apache in September 2019 with the 125 Helicopter Squadron at Pathankot in Punjab. A total of 22 helicopters were procured by the Air Force and later the Army went in for six of its own.

Manufactured by US aerospace giant Boeing, the Apache are heavily armed with air to surface missiles, rockets and a chin-mounted machine gun, along with sensors for target acquisition and night operations.

Apaches are designed to carry out attack missions in support of ground formations. Anti-tank, bunker busting, neutralising troop concentrations, destroying vehicles, field logistic hubs and communication nodes are among its role. It carries a crew of two.

Apaches were inducted to replace the older Soviet origin Mi-25/35 helicopter gunships that had been in service since the 1980s. These helicopters were deployed along the Line of Actual Control Ladakh following the stand-off with China in 2020 and continue to perform operations in high altitude areas.