The An-32 aircraft went missing in Arunachal Pradesh on June 3. (File)
The Indian Air Force has announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for information on the An-32 aircraft that went missing in Arunachal Pradesh after taking off from Assam's Jorhat on June 3.
The air force is undertaking a massive search operation to trace the plane but there has been no breakthrough yet.
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Air Command Air Marshal RD Mathur made the announcement for the cash reward today and released phone numbers where people can contact the air force with information -- 0378-3222164, 9436499477, 9402077267 and 9402132477.
The Indian Air Force is using all its assets and taking help of the army, Arunachal Pradesh civil authorities and other national agencies to locate the missing aircraft, wing commander Ratnakar Singh, the defence PRO in Shillong, said in a press release.
The Russian-made aircraft, with 13 people on board, took off from Jorhat at 12:27 pm on Monday for the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground. Its last contact with the ground control was at 1 pm. All the three armed forces have deployed their assets to trace the aircraft.
An aerial search operation could not be undertaken today to trace the missing transport aircraft due to poor weather conditions, even as ground troops continued combing the mountainous area for the sixth consecutive day. The assets deployed for the operation include Sukhoi-30 aircraft in addition to a fleet of C-130J and An-32 planes and Mi-17 and ALH helicopters. The ground forces include troops from the Army, Indo Tibetan Border Police and state police.
"The area of search is mountainous and heavily forested with thick undergrowth. The weather in the area has been inclement with low clouds and rain during most hours," an air force spokesperson said.