India’s frontline fighter aircraft—Rafale, Su-30MKI, and MiG-29—conducted take-off and landing exercises on a highway, signaling the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) strategic preparedness to maintain air superiority even if fixed airbase infrastructure is neutralized during wartime contingencies.
These drills, conducted under live operational conditions, unfold amid intensifying geopolitical friction with Pakistan following the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which left 26 people dead and reignited tensions across the volatile Line of Control (LoC).
Pakistan, in response, has claimed possession of credible intelligence suggesting that a retaliatory Indian military strike could occur within 36 to 48 hours—a window that has triggered heightened alert levels and force posturing on both sides of the border.
According to Indian defense media, the IAF executed a series of “Land and Go” maneuvers—aircraft touching down, decelerating, and immediately taking off—on a purpose-built 3.5-kilometer stretch of the Ganga Expressway in Uttar Pradesh, showcasing India’s capacity for dispersed operations and rapid runway regeneration.
“This airstrip on the Ganga Expressway was constructed using specially engineered materials designed to withstand the weight and pressure of heavy-duty military aircraft,” said a senior Indian official familiar with the project. “It also features precision approach lighting, reinforced pavement strength, and Category II Instrument Landing System (ILS) technology to ensure safe operations in low-visibility and night-time conditions,” the official added, underlining the sophistication of the system.
Also participating in the high-intensity sortie drills were Mirage-2000 and Jaguar strike aircraft, AN-32 and C-130J Super Hercules tactical transport planes, and Mi-17 helicopters—offering a glimpse into the IAF’s ability to orchestrate joint multi-platform operations under simulated combat environments.
The daytime and nighttime sorties underscore India’s strategic transition toward highway-based operations, a doctrine long adopted by countries like Sweden, China, and Pakistan, as part of their hardened dispersal tactics against precision missile or drone attacks on conventional airbases.
The 3.5-kilometer airstrip, seamlessly integrated into the broader civilian Ganga Expressway network, is a key component of India’s doctrine of survivable basing and dual-use infrastructure, designed to support both military operations and national disaster response.
Senior defense planners stress that this infrastructure will serve as a vital logistics and deployment node during crises—offering rapid access for combat aircraft, personnel evacuation, humanitarian aid missions, and mobile air defense platforms in the event of high-intensity conflict or natural calamity.
Spanning 594 kilometers, the Ganga Expressway is set to connect the industrial hub of Meerut with the strategic city of Prayagraj and is nearing completion, with formal inauguration scheduled for November 2025.
Beyond its obvious economic dividends for Uttar Pradesh’s western and eastern corridors, the expressway is fast emerging as a backbone for India’s integrated civil-military infrastructure vision, reflecting a deeper pivot toward kinetic mobility and tactical dispersal in the event of a major regional conflict.
India’s first expressway-integrated military airstrip is now certified for continuous fighter operations, marking a significant milestone in the country’s push for resilient, redundant basing options in the face of evolving threats, particularly from long-range precision strike systems such as cruise missiles and armed UAVs.
To ensure the highest standards of situational awareness and incident response, 250 CCTV cameras have been installed along the stretch, enabling real-time monitoring and enabling local law enforcement to act swiftly in the event of sabotage, intrusion, or technical emergencies.
In the broader regional context, India’s development of dual-use airstrip infrastructure also sends a calibrated message to adversaries, reinforcing its doctrine of deterrence by denial and ensuring credible force projection even under degraded operational environments.
The backdrop to these military exercises is the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, where 26 people were killed. The attack, which targeted tourists, has been attributed to the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba, although Pakistan denies involvement.
In response to the attack, India has taken several measures, including banning imports from Pakistan and closing its airspace to Pakistani aircraft. These actions have escalated tensions between the two countries, with Pakistan warning of potential military retaliation.
The IAF’s highway landing exercises can be seen as a demonstration of India’s readiness to respond to any escalation and to maintain operational capabilities even if traditional airbases are compromised.
India’s recent highway landing exercises by the IAF represent a significant shift in military strategy, emphasizing operational resilience and rapid deployment capabilities. In the context of escalating tensions with Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack, these drills serve both as a practical enhancement of military readiness and as a strategic signal of India’s preparedness to defend its interests under challenging circumstances.
