In Covid war, IAF clocks over 1,000 heavy-lift sorties

NEW DELHI: The IAF has now clocked over 1,000 sorties by its heavy-lift aircraft like C-17 Globemaster-III and Ilyushin-76 to transport cryogenic containers and medical equipment from abroad as well as within the country in the battle against oxygen shortage and transportation bottlenecks during the second Covid-19 pandemic wave.
“It has been a huge effort since mid-April. These 1,000 sorties, which include 161 sorties from abroad, do not include the ones being undertaken by medium-lift aircraft like C-130J ‘Super Hercules’ and Antonov-32,” said a defence ministry official on Monday.
From abroad, the IAF has airlifted over 120 containers and a load of over 500 metric ton of medical equipment from countries like Singapore, Dubai, Thailand, Germany, Australia, Belgium, Indonesia, the Netherlands, UK, Israel and France. The IAF has been transporting empty liquid medical oxygen containers since airlift of loaded ones can be hazardous.