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Relevance: GS Paper III (Internal Security — Defence Technology, Indigenisation) Source: IAF statement & news, June 2026

1 · What happened

On 13 June 2026, an Indian Air Force (IAF) An-32 transport aircraft crashed while landing at the Jorhat (Rowriah) Air Force Station in Assam. Five personnel were killed (including two young Agniveer Vayu airmen); the co-pilot survived. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered.

This was the third major An-32 crash in a decade. The two earlier crashes took 42 lives in all. Together, they have raised hard questions about an ageing fleet and how soon India can replace it.

2 · The Story So Far

What is the An-32? It is a twin-engine turboprop transport plane that India bought from the Soviet Union from 1984. Think of it as the IAF’s “truck in the sky” — it carries troops and supplies (about 6.7 tonnes of cargo, or 50 soldiers).

Its great strength is landing on short, rough, high-altitude airstrips near our mountain borders, where bigger planes cannot go. It served in the Kargil War (1999) and in disaster-relief missions. But the fleet is now old, and old metal tires over time.

Jul 2016 · Bay of Bengal Jun 2019 · Arunachal Jun 2026 · Jorhat
29 killed
Vanished over the sea (Chennai→Port Blair); wreckage found years later.		 13 killed
Hit a mountain en route from Jorhat to the Mechuka airstrip.		 5 killed
Crashed while landing at Jorhat; cause under inquiry.

  • The replacement — Airbus C-295. India signed a ₹21,935 crore deal for 56 C-295 transport planes to retire the oldest lifters. 16 come ready-made from Spain; 40 are being built in India by a Tata–Airbus team at Vadodara, Gujarat — the first time a private firm builds a full military aircraft in India.
  • Why this fits policy — “Make in India”. Building planes at home supports Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliance) and avoids the kind of supply breakdown the An-32 suffered. It also aligns with DAP 2020, which favours Indian-made defence equipment.
  • Why the North-East is so hard to fly. Sudden weather, low clouds and narrow valleys make flying old turboprops to border airstrips genuinely dangerous — a factor in past crashes.
  • Way ahead. Speed up the C-295 line to replace ageing planes faster, and use digital flight-data monitoring and predictive maintenance so faults are caught early — before a plane is pushed past its safe life.

UPSC Value Box
An-32 Soviet-origin (from 1984) twin-engine turboprop; the IAF’s tactical transport “workhorse” for tough border airfields.
Tactical airlift Moving troops and supplies over short ranges to forward/frontline areas.
Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) Small, basic airstrips near borders (e.g., Mechuka) used by such planes for supply and quick deployment.
Antonov upgrade deal $400-million deal (2009) with Ukraine’s Antonov to modernise 105 An-32s; disrupted after the 2014 Crimea crisis.
BRD, Kanpur IAF Base Repair Depot where part of the An-32 fleet was upgraded after the Ukraine route broke down.
Airbus C-295 56 planes for ₹21,935 cr; 16 from Spain, 40 made by Tata–Airbus at Vadodara — India’s first private military aircraft build.
DAP 2020 Defence Acquisition Procedure that prioritises Indian-made equipment under “Make in India” / Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Key Figures In service since 1984 · carries ~6.7 t / 50 troops · crashes: 2016 (29), 2019 (13), 2026 (5).

MCQ Practice Question
Q. With reference to the IAF’s transport fleet, consider the following statements:

  1. The An-32 is a twin-engine turboprop transport aircraft of Soviet origin, inducted by the IAF in the 1980s.
  2. Under the Airbus C-295 deal, all 56 aircraft are being imported in fly-away condition from Spain.
  3. The An-32 fleet’s modernisation was disrupted after the 2014 Crimea crisis affected the supply of components.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only    (b) 1 and 3 only    (c) 2 and 3 only    (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b) 1 and 3 only

  • Statement 1 — Correct: The An-32 is a Soviet-origin twin-engine turboprop, inducted from 1984.
  • Statement 2 — Incorrect (the trap): Only 16 C-295s come ready-made from Spain; the other 40 are built in India by Tata–Airbus at Vadodara. Not all are imported.
  • Statement 3 — Correct: The upgrade needed Russian-made parts, and the 2014 Crimea crisis broke that supply chain — forcing India to find alternatives.
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