An Indian Air Force transport aircraft has gone missing after taking off from an airbase in Assam. The last contact with the aircraft -- an Antonov An-32 military transport aircraft -- was at around 1pm today. 13 people were onboard the plane, including eight crew members and five passengers.

The Indian Air Force has deployed all available resources to locate the aircraft.

The Antonov An-32 had taken off from Jorhat in Assam and was heading to the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground, located in Mechuka Valley in Arunachal Pradesh.

The plane lost contact around 35 minutes after taking off.

The Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground is located near the China border.

In July 2016, Indian Air Force An-32 transport aircraft disappeared over the Bay of Bengal with 29 people onboard. The plane had taken off from an airbase in Chennai and was headed to Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Radar contact with the plane was lost around an hour after the An-32 took off from the Tambaram Air Force Station, Chennai.

Following the disappearance, the Indian Air Force launched what later became India's largest search operation for a missing plane over the sea. However, the aircraft was never found and search operations were called off on September 2016.

The plane was presumed to have crashed and all the people onboard were presumed dead. </s> An Indian Air Force transport aircraft has gone missing after taking off from an airbase in Assam. The last contact with the aircraft — an Antonov An-32 military transport aircraft — was at around 1pm today. 13 people were onboard the plane, including eight crew members and five passengers, India Today reported.

The Indian Air Force has deployed all available resources to locate the aircraft.

The Antonov An-32 had taken off from Jorhat in Assam and was heading to the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground, located in Mechuka Valley in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground is located near the China border. </s> An Indian Air Force transport aircraft has gone missing after taking off from an airbase in Assam. The last contact with the aircraft -- an Antonov An-32 military transport aircraft -- was at around 1pm today. 13 people were onboard the plane, including eight crew members and five passengers.

The Indian Air Force has deployed all available resources, including Sukhoi Su-30 combat fighter jets and C-130 Hercules special operations aircraft, to locate the aircraft.

Troops in the ground too have fanned out to hunt for the missing An-32.

In a tweet posted a few hours after the An-32 went missing, the Indian Air Force said that search operations for the missing plane will continue into the night.

The Air Force said some reports were recieved of the sighting of a possible crash site. However, those reports did not turn out to be true.

IAF is coordinating with Indian Army, various government and civil agencies to locate the missing aircraft. Search operations will continue from air and by ground parties of Indian Army through the night. 4/4 Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) June 3, 2019

The Antonov An-32 had taken off from Jorhat in Assam and was heading to the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground, located in Mechuka Valley in Arunachal Pradesh.

The plane lost contact around 35 minutes after taking off.

The Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground is located near the China border.

The Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in Arunachal Pradesh (click to zoom)

In July 2016, Indian Air Force An-32 transport aircraft disappeared over the Bay of Bengal with 29 people onboard. The plane had taken off from an airbase in Chennai and was headed to Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Radar contact with the plane was lost around an hour after the An-32 took off from the Tambaram Air Force Station, Chennai.

Following the disappearance, the Indian Air Force launched what later became India's largest search operation for a missing plane over the sea. However, the aircraft was never found and search operations were called off on September 2016.

The plane was presumed to have crashed and all the people onboard were presumed dead. </s> An Indian Air Force transport aircraft carrying eight crew members and five passengers that took off from Assam's Jorhat earlier today has gone missing, sources have told NDTV.

The Antonov An-32 took off at 12:25 pm for a landing strip in Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh.

The aircraft last had contact with ground forces at 1 pm, sources said.

The Air Force has launched a search operation to track down the plane.

The An-32 is a Russian-designed twin engine turboprop transport aircraft used extensively by the Indian Air Force for over four decades. </s> The wreckage of the AN-32 aircraft of The Indian Air Force (IAF) that went missing on June 3 has finally been spotted. A team of Indian Air Force (IAF) officials found the debris at 16kms North of Lipo and North-East of Tato at an approximate elevation of 12,000 ft in Arunachal Pradesh.

In a statement on Twitter, IAF said, "The wreckage of the missing #An32 was spotted today 16 Kms North of Lipo, North East of Tato at an approximate elevation of 12000 ft by the #IAF Mi-17 Helicopter undertaking search in the expanded search zone."

IAF, however, makes no mention about the status of the 13 occupants. It added that the efforts are still underway to find the survivors.

The Soviet-origin twin-engine turboprop Antonov-32 military transport plane was carrying 13 passengers from Assam's Jorhat to a remote base in Arunachal Pradesh when it went missing at around 12:25 pm, half an hour after it took off.

IAF had launched a massive search operation hours after the aircraft went missing. However, there were delays due to poor weather conditions even as ground troops continued to comb the mountainous area for days. The assets deployed for the operation included Sukhoi-30 aircraft in addition to a fleet of C-130J and AN-32 planes and Mi-17 and ALH helicopters. The ground forces included troops from the Army, Indo Tibetan Border Police and state police.

The IAF on Saturday announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh to anyone providing information about location of the AN-32 transport aircraft.

Also Read: Missing in action: Why Antonov AN-32 is India's most troubled aircraft

Also Read: Indian Air Force announces Rs 5 lakh reward for information on missing AN-32 aircraft </s> New Delhi: An Indian Air Force transport aircraft that took off from Assam’s Jorhat earlier today with eight crew members and five passengers onboard has gone missing.

The Antonov An-32 took off at 12:25 pm for a military landing strip in Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh. The Air Force has launched a search operation to track down the plane.

The terrain under the flight’s route is mountainous and heavily-forested. The landing and take-off approaches to Mechuka are extremely difficult. The An-32 is a Russian-designed twin engine turboprop transport aircraft used extensively by the Indian Air Force for over four decades.

In 2016, an Indian Air Force An-32 disappeared while flying over the Bay of Bengal after taking off from Chennai for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. </s> CHANDIGARH (AA): An Indian Air Force (IAF) plane carrying 13 personnel has gone missing after it took off from a town in the country’s northeastern state of Assam on Monday afternoon, officials said.

The authorities have launched a search operation to trace the missing aircraft.

Roshni Aparanji Korati, deputy commissioner of Jorhat district in Assam, told Anadolu Agency that the aircraft of Indian Air Force took off from Jorhat in the afternoon and didn’t reach the destination.

Meanwhile, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh prayed for the safety of all the passengers on board.

“Spoke to Vice Chief of @IAF_MCC, Air Marshal Rakesh Singh Bhadauria regarding the missing IAF AN-32 Aircraft which is overdue for some hours. He has apprised me of the steps taken by the IAF to find the missing aircraft. I pray for the safety of all passengers on board,” Singh said in a Twitter post.

Local media reported that the aircraft was a transport plane.

“The Antonov AN-32 took off at 12:25 pm [0655 GMT] for a remote military landing strip in Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh,” local broadcaster NDTV reported.

“The terrain under the flight’s route is mountainous and heavily-forested. The landing and take-off approaches to Mechuka are extremely difficult,” the broadcaster said. </s> The plane went missing with 13 people on board.

The Indian plane with 13 people on board went missing on Monday in the country’s remote north-east, prompting authorities to launch search operations.

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The Antonov An-32, took off from the Jorhat airbase in the Assam state for the Mechuka military landing strip, in Arunachal Pradesh state.

It was carrying eight crew members and five passengers, official sources told broadcaster NDTV.

“I Spoke to vice chief of Indian Airforce (IAF) Air Marshal Rakesh Singh Bhadauria, regarding the missing aircraft which is overdue for some hours,’’ Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh said on Twitter.

“He has apprised me of steps taken by the IAF to find the missing aircraft. I pray for the safety of all passengers on board,’’ Singh added.

The flight had been scheduled to land at Mechuka in an hour, but the aircraft lost contact with ground forces 30 minutes after take-off, the report said.

The IAF had launched search operations to track the plane.

The plane is likely to have gone missing over the eastern Himalayan range, where the terrain is mountainous with a thick forest.

The landing and take-off approaches to Mechuka are extremely difficult.

In 2016, an Indian air force, An-32, disappeared while flying over the Bay of Bengal.

A search-and-rescue operation was launched, but the aircraft was never found. </s> An Indian Air Force AN-32 transport aircraft with 13 people on board went missing on Monday afternoon around 33 minutes after taking off from Jorhat in Assam for Arunachal's Menchuka near the border with China.

Thirteen people, including eight crew members, were onboard the aircraft. The Antonov An-32, which was headed to the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground, located in Mechuka Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, lost contact around 35 minutes after taking off from Jorhat in Assam.

The Indian Air Force has deployed Sukhoi Su-30 combat fighter jets, a C-130 Hercules special operations aircraft to locate the aircraft but the An-32 is yet to be traced.

As search operations continue, here are developments in 10 points.

1. The Indian Air Force aircraft took off from Jorhat at 12.27 pm for the Menchuka advance landing ground in Shi-Yomi district in Arunachal Pradesh and made last contact with the ground control at 1pm.

2. A total of eight aircrew and five passengers were onboard the Air Force aircraft.

3. The IAF has deployed C-130J and AN-32 aircraft besides two Mi-17 choppers while the Indian Army has pressed into service advance light helicopters to locate the missing Antonov AN-32 aircraft. The search operations from air and by ground parties of the Indian Army continued through the night.

4. The district administration of Shi Yomi district in Arunachal Pradesh also launched a search operation along with the villagers.

5. Ground reports were received on the possible location of a crash site on Monday but when helicopters were routed to the location, no wreckage was found.

6. Search operations continue on Tuesday. "Search and rescue (SAR) operation resumes as the weather clears up on Tuesday. Two MI 17s and one ALH already deployed with the ground party of Army and ITBP," Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said, adding that more assets may be deployed if required.

7. On the missing An-32, defence minister Rajnath Singh said he had spoken to the vice chief of the force on steps to find the missing aircraft and was praying for the safety of all those on board.

8. Defence Ministry spokesperson said all efforts were being made to locate the missing Air Force plane. The spokesperson said Rajnath Singh was keeping an eye on the situation.

9. IAF officials said the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground is around 35km from the China border. The Mechuka ALG, where the aircraft was supposed to land, was re-activated last year. It was non-functional since 2013.

10. The AN-32 is a Russian origin aircraft and the IAF currently operates a sizeable number of it. It is a twin-engine turboprop transport aircraft.

READ | Air Force An-32 transport plane missing after taking off from Assam
An Indian Air Force Antonov An-32 goes missing shortly after takeoff from an airbase in Assam. All 13 people aboard are presumed dead as search operations continue.