Named after a revered Buddhist monk, Leh’s Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport is witnessing an unprecedented event which may bring into play the role of global warming.
There has been a mass cancellation of flights due to an ensuing heat wave, the likes of which Ladakh’s capital city hasn’t seen in recent history. Flight tickets as a result are selling at a premium. On Sunday, the mercury touched an unbelievable 36 degrees for the cold desert.
Air density is already rarefied and thin at Leh. Extreme heat makes the air even more lighter. Aero-engines need a certain level of air density to acquire the requisite speed for take off, and even to maintain speed during landing.
Built in 1985 to handle limited flights for the Indian Air Force (IAF), the KBR Airport is the highest civilian airport in India and among the highest located ones in the world. Located at 10,682 feet above mean sea level, the surge in day temperatures has crippled civilian air operations that could have implications for the crucial military air operations.
It is the nodal airport for the Indian military which airlifts equipment and supplies before helicopters and trucks take over to feed the supply to the various military stations and posts dotted across the strategic region. The higher reaches up north from Leh, like the Siachen glacier, which faces Pakistan on one side and China on the other, are dependent on the Leh airport to a large extent.
The criticality of the airport becomes more important in winter when the road linkages to Leh from both Manali and Srinagar are closed due to heavy snowfall.
A serving military official told THE WEEK on condition of anonymity that military air operations would also be impacted because military aircraft and large-bodied civilian aircraft function on the same principles.
Even the nights were much warmer which is doubly uncomfortable as residential accommodations in the city do not have installed ceiling fans.
Not just Leh, but surrounding areas even in the much colder north, including the 17, 982-feet-high Khardungla pass witnessed very hot and humid weather.
The IAF has given additional land of 11.8 acres to the Airports Authority of India for the construction of another terminal at the LBR airport. Once completed, the airport will be able to handle 20 lakh more passengers annually instead of the present capacity of nine lakh a year.