Andaman airspace closed for 3 hours for high altitude weapon test
NEW DELHI: The airspace over and around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was closed for three hours on Friday morning for a high-altitude weapon test conducted by India's only tri-services command, officials said.
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A senior officer from the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) confirmed that the restricted airspace closure will be repeated on Saturday as part of scheduled military activity. 'Like today, the airspace over and around Andaman and Nicobar Islands will be closed tomorrow for three hours (7 am to 10 am IST),' the official told reporters.
The airspace restriction was announced via a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued on May 16, which stated that no civilian aircraft would be permitted to fly over the area on May 23 and 24.
'Airspace over and around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with maximum corridor length of around 500 km will be restricted between 01:30 and 04:30 UTC (7 am to 10 am IST) on May 23 and 24,' the NOTAM excerpt read.
On Friday, the ANC confirmed that it had 'successfully completed' a high-altitude weapon test. A similar exercise is scheduled for Saturday morning.
'This is routine practice here in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. We've carried out similar tests in the past as part of our operational readiness,' the official added.
The Andaman and Nicobar Command, headquartered in Port Blair, is the Indian military's only integrated tri-services command, bringing together the Army, Navy, and Air Force under a single operational structure.
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