Two Chinese helicopters violated LAC; enters Indian airspace near Ladakh

On 27 September, two Chinese helicopters crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC)- the de-facto border between China and India.

According to news agency ANI, the transgression happened near Ladakh’s Trade junction, which connects Ladakh with Tibet. ANI quoted ITBP sources saying that the two choppers remained in the Indian territory for about 10 minutes before heading back.

Notably, this comes weeks after Pakistan violated Indian airspace in the Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir. An Army spokesperson said that a white-colour chopper crossed into this side in Gulpur sector and hovered for sometime before turning back.

It was alleged that inside the chopper were PoK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan, Tourism Minister Mushtaq Minhas and the province’s Education Minister Ifthikar Gilani. However, these allegations were later rejected by the PoK Prime Minister.

As per the data from the army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), China’s Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) has violated Indian airspace at least five times in the first three months this year. Overall, the PLA has made 45 transgressions in 2018.

On June 16 last year, Chinese troops entered Doklam territory with construction vehicles and road-building equipment began extending an existing road southward. On June 18, with an aim to stop the Chinese troops from constructing the road, around 270 Indian troops with weapons and two bulldozers entered Doklam. Both India and China, on August 28, announced that they had withdrawn all their soldiers from Doklam.

Also Read: Chinese army crosses Line of Actual Control thrice in August