Amarda Road Airstrip, also known as Rasgovindpur Airstrip is a former wartime airfield located near Rasgovindpur village in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, India. It is the largest airstrip in Asia, spread across 900 acres with 2.5 km of long runaways.
The Historian Anil Dhar told, the Amarda airstrip had a brief but distinguished history that never revealed to public. “It was built during WWII (1939-45) as a forward airfield against the Japanese conquest of Burma.” The large strip served as a landing strip for planes as well as a training area for special bombing missions.
Following the British abandonment of this location, some bunkers on the airfields were sealed and never opened. It is said that amunation and some equipment were left inside, which remains a mystery.
The government should pay special attention to this location as well. Despite the fact that the airfield dates from the British era, the runways are in good condition.
Because of the area’s undeveloped status, locals have taken over the lands surrounding the airfields and begun farming.
The Plane Mishap
Two British Royal Air Force B-24 Liberator four-engine bombers collided at a low altitude near the secret Amarda airfield on July 26, 1945. The crash killed fourteen airmen, all of whom were members of the crews of the two aircraft. The airmen were from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. One of them was Native American.
Conclusions:
Okay !
The most important aspect of this location is that “most people in Odisha are unaware of it.” There must be untold stories about this airstrip that need to be revealed.
The airport will be the best tourist destination if the government takes responsibility and begins to maintain it.
References
https://orissadiary.com/odisha-amarda-road-crash-memorial-service-rasgovindpur-airstrip/
