Sukhois to get closer to Pakistan border

For the first time, India’s frontline fighter aircraft, Sukhoi-30-MKI, will be based very close to the Indo-Pak border, only around 150 km away, at Halwara, near Ludhiana. Sources in the IAF said the runway reconstruction at the Halwara airbase was nearing completion and the first squadron of the Sukhois would move there by the end of the year or at best early next year. The twin-engined Russian-origin Sukhois, which are now produced under licence in India, are one of the leading warplanes of the world. These are set to become deadlier with the slated fitting of super-sonic cruise missile BrahMos under its belly. A Sukhoi-30-MKI flying at top speed of around two mach, about 2,450 kmph, will be able to reach the western border of India within 4 minutes of the take-off from Halwara. The original plan was to have Sukhois at Halwara at the start of this year itself, however, it was held back due to the runway reconstruction project.

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