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Updated: Mar 7, 2017, 08.14 PM IST
Another iconic naval platform is now set for retirement after aircraft carrier INS Viraat / Royal Navy HMS Hermes.
The Soviet-origin Tupolev-142M aircraft,
which helped the force keep a hawk-eye on enemy warships and submarines in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) for almost 30 years,
will be decommissioned later this month.
The world's largest and fastest turboprop aircraft, aptly named the 'Albatross,'
the Navy had inducted eight TU-142Ms since 1988.
"They were the backbone of our long-range maritime reconnaissance (LRMR) and anti-submarine warfare operations.
But only three are fully operational now.
They will now be retired at the naval air station INS Rajali in Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu at a ceremony on March 29," said an officer.
Much like the TU-142Ms earlier,
the P-8Is now work in conjunction with medium-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft like the IL-38s
and Israeli Searcher-II and Heron UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) to establish a three-tier surveillance grid in IOR.
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