The Indian Air Force (IAF) in a daring operation carried out by the C-130J aircraft on the night of April 27, 28, 2023, rescued 121 personnel from a small airstrip at Wadi Seidna, which is about 40 km North of Khartoum, Sudan.
The passengers included medical cases, including a pregnant lady, besides those who had no means to reach Port Sudan, the IAF said in a statement. The convoy was led by the Indian Defence Attache who was in continuous touch with IAF authorities all along, till they reached the airstrip at Wadi Seidna
The airstrip in question had a degraded surface, with no navigational approach, aids or fuel, and most critical or landing lights (that are required to guide an aircraft landing at night).
The aircrew on approaching the airstrip, used their Electro-Optical/Infra Red sensors to ensure that the runway was free from any obstructions and no inimical forces were in the vicinity. Having made sure of the same, the aircrew carried out a tactical approach on Night Vision Goggles, on a practically dark night.
Upon landing, the aircraft engines were kept running while eight IAF Garud Commandos secured the passengers and their luggage into the aircraft. As with the landing, the take-off from the unlit runway was also carried out using NVGs.
This approximately two-and-a-half-hour operation between Wadi Sayyidna and Jeddah will go down in the annals of IAF history for its sheer audacity and flawless execution – akin to that carried out in Kabul.
Meanwhile, under ‘Operation Kaveri’ on Friday, another Indian Air Force C-130J flight took off from conflict-torn Sudan with 135 passengers onboard for Jeddah.
“Another IAF C-130J flight takes off from Port Sudan with 135 passengers onboard. This is the 11th batch of stranded Indians heading to Jeddah,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted.
Earlier in the morning, the IAF C-130J flight on Friday (today) evacuated the 10th batch of 135 Indian passengers from Port Sudan to Jeddah after the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to extend their ceasefire amid ongoing violence in the capital Khartoum and the western Darfur region.
