146 stranded passengers airlifted between J-K & Ladakh

The Indian Air Force and state-run helicopter service provider Pawan Hans on Tuesday airlifted together a total of 146 people stranded at various places in J&K and Ladakh and flew them to their destinations, officials said.

The IAF’s AN-32 Kargil Courier transported 111 people while Mi-172 Pawan Hans helicopter flew 35 to their destinations.

As many as 41 people were flown from Jammu to Kargil and 12 from Kargil to Jammu, they said.

Similarly, AN-32 aircraft flew 16 people from Kargil to Srinagar and 42 from Srinagar to Kargil, they said.

The Mi-172 Pawan Hans helicopter transported 32 from Srinagar to Kargil and three from Leh to Kargil.

The IAF has been operating C-17, C-130 and AN-32 aircraft regularly to airlift stranded passengers in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh due to the closure of the 434-km Srinagar-Leh national highway owing to heavy snowfall in January.