Panagarh gets two Super Hercules from Hindon till arrival of new aircraft

Kolkata: Thursday was a special day for Air Force Station Arjan Singh in Panagarh, West Bengal, when two C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from the 'Veiled Vipers' squadron based at Air Force Station Hindon was stationed here in the presence of Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha. Air Force Station Arjan Singh (formerly known as Air Force Station Panagarh) has been upgraded to accommodate a second squadron on Super Hercules for which an order has been placed with Lockheed Martin.The company was also tasked with construction of special hangars for the strategic aircraft. The construction was completed in April and the new aircraft will start arriving from April, 2017. Till then, the two C-130Js from Hindon will operate from Panagarh.
"After formalizing flying procedures, the two aircraft will commence operations from AFS Arjan Singh. Air Chief Marshal Raha reviewed the new hangar facility on Thursday along with Air Marshal C Hari Kumar, air-officer-commanding-in-chief, Eastern Air Command. As a turnkey project, Lockheed Martin built the hangar facilities at Panagarh and other associated infrastructure as in Hindon. They are similar to the facilities built world over for Super Hercules tactical aircraft that IAF operates since February 2011," said defence spokesperson Wing Commander S S Birdi.
The hangar facilities are extremely top secret. According to a source, the hangars are built in such a way as to accommodate Special Forces underneath. When the need arises, the troops are ready within minutes to board the aircraft. The Army has also raised a Mountain Strike Corps headquartered at Panagarh to secure the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China along the northeastern states such as Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. India plans to use the Super Hercules, not only for air support to troops stationed at inaccessible areas along the LAC but also for quicker deployment of Special Forces and equipment in case of exigencies. Special Forces are already playing a vital role in counter insurgency operations in the northeastern states.
"A fly-past by a single C-130J was timed to coincide with the air chief's visit to the newly built hangar facilities at the airbase even as the second aircraft was parked at the tarmac for static display. The air chief interacted with the air warriors of the airbase as well as Lockheed Martin officials. A new transport squadron will be raised at AFS Arjan Singh to operate the Super Hercules aircraft. Presently, two AN-32 squadrons operate out of the Jorhat airbase in Upper Assam, while a flight of Avro aircraft undertakes VIP communication duties from Borjhar airbase, Guwahati. Air Chief Marshal Raha will also visit other adjoining airbases at Kalaikunda, Salua and Purnea in the next couple of days," Birdi added.