IAF conducts night rescue mission to airlift critically injured patient from Campbell Bay

New Delhi: In a race against time, the Andaman and Nicobar Command mounted a night-time medical evacuation on Saturday after receiving an urgent call for help from Campbell Bay, one of India’s most remote island outposts. The patient, unconscious and suffering from a severe head injury, needed specialized care unavailable on the isolated island.

Acting swiftly, Air Force units scrambled a night sortie, deploying an Mi-17 V5 helicopter and a Dornier aircraft to carry out the evacuation.

In a post on X, the Andaman and Nicobar Command said that it responded to an urgent request for medical evacuation. Air Force assets of the command launched a night sortie on July 10. The unconscious patient with a severe head injury was airlifted from Campbell Bay to Sri Vijaya Puram by IAF Mi-17 V5 and Dornier aircraft for advanced tertiary medical care, it added. 

“The Andaman Nicobar Command remains steadfast in its commitment to providing swift humanitarian assistance and lifesaving support across the remote and far-flung islands,” it said.

The mission highlights the vital role the Andaman and Nicobar Command plays in the region, where scattered and hard-to-reach islands often depend entirely on the armed forces for emergency medical support. Officials reiterated that the command remains committed to providing rapid humanitarian assistance whenever island communities are in need – often the only lifeline connecting remote settlements to advanced medical care.

For the residents of these far-flung islands, such swift responses are frequently the difference between life and death, highlighting why this readiness to act, day or night, remains central to the command’s mission.