Turkiye denies airspace for plane carrying three Apache copters for Army

The Indian Army’s tranche of last three Apache attack helicopters to be delivered by Boeing has been delayed after Turkiye refused to allow the plane carrying the consignment use its airspace.

On November 1, a specialised cargo aircraft, Antonov AN-124, carrying the three Apache helicopters was on its way to India from Arizona (US). After the plane landed in England for refuelling, it could not undertake its further journey to India as Turkiye didn’t allow it to use its airspace. As the permission was denied for a week, the Antonov plane had to fly back to the US with the three helicopters.

“We are currently addressing logistical issues caused by external factors to complete the delivery process for the remaining helicopters,” Boeing said in a statement. It said it was “closely engaged with the US government and the Indian Army to execute the contract as expeditiously as possible to meet India’s needs and fleet requirements”.

Boeing has so far delivered 22 Apache helicopters to the Indian Air Force and three to the Army. The previous three helicopters for the Army were delivered in August and the same Antonov aircraft then flew through Turkish airspace.

Last month, Indian officials had skipped the Turkish National Day celebrations in New Delhi, in what was seen as a message to Ankara following its support to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.