IAF to retrieve Apache from Ladakh on truck

An Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter, which carried out a precautionary landing during an operational sortie in Ladakh in April this year, is being retrieved after months of arduous work that included specialised teams hiking to reach the site at 12,000 ft.

The Boeing Apache helicopter of the IAF made an emergency landing on April 4 at a location north of the Khardung La — a 18,380-ft-high pass. Both pilots were airlifted the same day.

Dismantled for easy transport

• Boeing Apache made an emergency landing north of Khardung La at 18,380-ft altitude; airlifting not viable, it

  will be transported by road from its present location

• All of its nearly 400 parts were taken out and carried to nearest road and transported to Leh; only airframe and the engine remain at the site for which a crane has been readied

After a detailed analysis, it has been decided that the copter will be transported by road from its present location. Airlifting it is impossible from that altitude, sources said. The only other option was to winch up the Apache as an under-slung load. This has been ruled out as the copter is too heavy to be lifted by Chinook, the most powerful helicopter in the IAF fleet. A Chinook can carry an Apache, but to lift it from 12,000 ft and carry it across the 18,380-ft-high Khardung La is not feasible, the sources said Copters don’t have a same load carrying capacity at such altitudes, as they have in the plains. The IAF has done hard work before it got to decide on the fate of the Apache copter.

During the process of this forced landing, the copter sustained damage due to undulating terrain and high altitude.

First, an IAF technical team explored the options. This was followed by team of a IAF team of engineers getting acclimatised for 21 days. The team then climbed to the site where the copter made an emergency landing. An assessment was done. All the parts, some 400 of them, of Apache were taken out one-by-one and physically carried by men to the nearest road and transported to Leh.

As now only the airframe and the engine remain at the site. A specialised crane has been readied. It will be dismantled and carried part-by-part by specialised trained mountaineers to the site. The crane will then lift the Apache and used it long steel wires to lower the copter onto a truck for further journey to Leh.

Already, night time temperatures are below freezing in Ladakh. The IAF had imported 22 Apaches from US-based Boeing for Rs 14,910 crore. The copter is used to attack targets on ground and in air. A detachment of the copters has been deployed in Ladakh since the ongoing military standoff with China.