Indian Air Force (IAF) chief B S Dhanoa on Monday said that the AN-32 transport aircraft will continue to fly in the mountains.
He also said as there is no replacement or alternative, the IAF is left with no option.
The statement by Air Force chief assumes significance as more than a fortnight ago, an AN-32 aircraft, with 13 IAF personnel on board, crashed in Arunachal Pradesh.
Dhanoa made this statement while interacting with media in Gwalior during a commemoration to mark 20 years of the Kargil war.
The IAF chief further said that the Air Force is in the process of getting a more modern aircraft, adding that once the same procured, the An-32 would be phased out and assigned for routine transport and training roles.
The June 3 crash in Arunachal Pradesh was the third AN-32 crash in recent years. In 2016, an aircraft with 29 people onboard disappeared over the Bay of Bengal and was never found.
Before that in June 2009, another aircraft went missing and was later found to have crashed again in the jungles of Arunachal Pradesh.
