- This landing happened at Wadi Sayyidna air base, which is around 40 kilometres from the capital Khartoum.
NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, APR 28
754 more Indian citizens have been evacuated from violence-hit Sudan and brought back home on Friday by the government under Operation Kaveri.
In a daring operation on the intervening night of April 27 and April 28, Indian Air Force (IAF) C-130J aircraft performed a night landing at a degraded airstrip near Khartoum to evacuate stranded Indians from strife-torn Sudan. The runway had no lights or navigational aids. The passengers included medical cases, including a pregnant lady, besides those who had no means to reach Port Sudan, says IAF sources.
Airstrip had degraded surface, no Nav aids, fuel or landing lights
Aircrew used EO-IR sensors & NVG for landing
Engines kept running & Garud #Commandos secured passengers & luggage into
#Operation will go down in annals of history for its sheer audacity & flawless execution pic.twitter.com/bNGPk3oV2o
— PRO Defence Gujarat (@DefencePRO_Guj) April 28, 2023
While 392 people arrived in New Delhi in a C-17 Indian Air Force aircraft, another batch of 362 Indians were brought to Bengaluru.
With this, the total number of Indians who have been brought back from the troubled African nation, is now 1,360, as per official data.
The people have been brought home from the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah, where India has set up a transit camp for the evacuees.
The first batch of 360 evacuees was brought to New Delhi in a commercial plane on April 26.
The second batch of 246 evacuees arrived in Mumbai in a C-17 Globemaster on April 27.
Under Operation Kaveri, India has been rescuing its citizens in buses from conflict zones in Khartoum and other troubled areas to Port Sudan.
From there, they are being taken to Jeddah and from the Saudi Arabian city, they are being brought back to India.
India has set up separate control rooms in Jeddah and Port Sudan, while the Indian embassy in Khartoum has been coordinating with them and the External Affairs Ministry here.
