In the last six months, the Indian Air Force has flown more than 160 hours for supporting the missions of Defence Research and Development Organisation for COVID-19 relief and weapon trials

Without the support of the Indian Air Force, it would not have been possible for DRDO to carry out many of its weapon trials at short notice and transport material for its anti-Covid-19 equipment, DRDO chairman Dr G Satheesh Reddy said.

"The Indian Air Force has given us active support for our trials and anti-COVID-19 measures. Without their active support, it would not have been possible to carry out many of our weapon trials at short notice as well as transportation of men and material to fight against COVID-19," Reddy told ANI when asked about the role of Air Force in supporting DRDO in recent times.

In last six to seven weeks, the DRDO has carried out more than a dozen successful trials of different weapon systems including the Shaurya strategic missile, Nag anti-tank guided missile, BrahMos Extended Range missile system, Hypersonic Missile Technology Demonstration Vehicle and the Rudram-1 anti-radiation missile system.

In the last six months, the Indian Air Force has flown more than 160 hours for supporting the missions of Defence Research and Development Organisation for COVID-19 relief and weapon trials.

The coordination has been done between the Directorate General of Air Operations in the Air Force and the Program Office-I of the DRDO for facilitating these air movements.

Of the 160 hours flown by the Air Force in support of DRDO using its different transport aircraft and choppers, close to 100 hours have been exclusively for ferrying material for the COVID-19 missions.

The DRDO has also been provided with 15 different aircraft for its trial teams. The Wheeled Armoured Platform of the DRDO was also ferried using an Air Force aircraft to the operational areas in Ladakh.