Page 316 - SSB Interview: The Complete Guide, Second Edition

against a mercenary invasion in Operation Cactus. The IL-76s of No.44
Squadron landed at Hulhule at 0030 hours and the Indian paratroopers

secured the airfield and restored Government rule at Male within hours.

Kargil 1999

95. During the Kargil conflict, IAF Mirage 2000Hs, along with MiG-27s

carried out strikes against enemy positions. On 11 May 1999, the Indian
Air Force was called in to provide close air support to the Indian Army

at the height of the ongoing Kargil conflict with the use of helicopters.
The IAF strike was code-named Operation Safed Sagar. The first strikes

were launched on 26 May, when the Indian Air Force struck infiltrator

positions with fighter aircraft and helicopter gunships.
The initial strikes saw MiG-27s carrying out offensive sorties, with

MiG-21s and later MiG-29s providing fighter cover. The IAF also
deployed its radars and the MiG-29 fighters in vast numbers to keep a
check on Pakistani military movements across the border. At this time,
Srinagar Airport was closed to civilian air traffic and dedicated to the

Indian Air Force.

Post Kargil

96. On 10 August 1999, IAF MiG-21s intercepted a Pakistan Navy Breguet
Atlantic, which was flying over the disputed region of Sir Creek. The

aircraft was shot down, killing all 16 Pakistani Navy personnel on board.

India claimed that the Atlantic was on a mission to gather information
on IAF air defence, a charge emphatically rejected by Pakistan, which

argued that the unarmed aircraft was on a training mission.

97. Since the late 1990s, the Indian Air Force has been modernising its fleet

to counter challenges in the new century. The fleet size of the IAF has
decreased to 33 squadrons during this period because of the retirement

of older aircraft. Still, India maintains the fourth-largest air force in the

world. The squadron strength is being raised to 42 squadrons.
98. On 20 August 2013, the Indian Air Force created a world record by