In 10-Hour Mission, Indian C-17 Airdropped 18 Commandos Near Somali Coast

The details of a daring operation in low-light conditions by Indian forces to rescue 17 crew of a merchant ship near the Somalian coast was made public by the government while honouring the pilot who flew a C-17 military transport aircraft to carry out the high-risk mission.

Wing Commander Akshay Saxena, who was commissioned into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in June 2006, was posted with the C-17 squadron from February 2021. On the eve of Republic Day, he was conferred the Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry) "for his act of indomitable courage and conspicuous gallantry".

Wing Commander Saxena finalised suitable crew and ensured aircraft readiness for a quick launch due to the time critical and secret nature of the mission, the Defence Ministry said in a statement on January 25.

The mission involved real threat of small arms with the pirates over and above the extended mission timelines which involved flying into airspace of another country undeclared and undetected for close to four hours, the Defence Ministry said.

The mission was carried out on March 16, 2024 in support of the anti-piracy Operation Sankalp in the Arabian Sea.

Wing Commander Saxena airdropped two combat rubberised raiding craft (CRRC) boats and a team of 18 MARCOs with combat load to capture a pirate-controlled ship, which was not only launching attacks on merchant vessels in the Arabian Sea, but also opened fire at INS Kolkata and had shot down a naval spotter drone on March 15, 2024, the Defence Ministry said.

MARCOs are the special forces of the Indian Navy.

Wing Commander Akshay Saxena

The objective area was near the Somalian coast, 1,450 nautical miles (NM) and 540 NMs out of Indian flight information region.

One NM is approximately 1.8 km. Flight information region is a defined airspace of specific dimensions within which flight information and alerting services are provided; all airspace worldwide is divided into flight information regions.

Wing Commander Saxena, the Captain of the C-17 aircraft, decided to switch off all emitters, fly low level over high seas in foreign territory and drop at dusk time to avoid detection, the Defence Ministry said.

Even after receiving a changed drop location only 50 NMs prior to the drop, he guided the crew to safely execute a precision airdrop, thus resulting in the capture of the pirates and rescue of MV Ruen with its 17 member crew.

He displayed effective inter-service coordination with the Indian Navy while maintaining heightened situational awareness both on ground and in air, the Defence Ministry said, adding all possible measures were taken to maintain secrecy of the almost 10-hour-long mission.

During the flawless execution of the extremely gruelling mission, the officer displayed exceptional courage, dynamic leadership, outstanding professionalism and steadfast determination, the Defence Ministry said.