Army Gets 20 Advanced Avalaunch Rescue Systems

Army gets 20 advanced rescue systems, that will save soldiers’ lives in avalanches on icy mountains.

Indian Army personnel will no longer have to lose their lives in an avalanche while patrolling or on duty on snowy hills.

The Army has procured 20 state-of-the-art Avalaunch Rescue Systems from abroad, which are capable of quickly locating soldiers buried under the snow.

For the first time, the army has got such advanced systems. Defense sources that this equipment would be sent to different sector stores of the Army’s Northern Command.

The army has purchased these avalanche rescue systems from a Swedish company. They were ordered two years ago.

Till now, the High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS) in Gulmarg had a limited number of avalanche rescue systems. Here special training is given for war in the mountains and winter.

The systems here were also purchased last year. Sources said that till now the army was operating less than basic detectors and underground search radars to locate the soldiers in the avalanche.

The need for a state-of-the-art rescue system was felt in the past few years after avalanches in the Siachen Glacier, Kashmir, and high-altitude areas of the Northeast killed a large number of soldiers.

This will save the life of a soldier buried in the snow.

The new avalanche rescue systems that the military received from Swedish company Reko, each have 150 transponders.

According to the company’s website, the detectors in the rescue system emit a radar signal, which is signaled back after hitting the reflector.

In this way, the person buried in the snow is detected. These reflectors are very light. These consist of high-capacity transponders with diodes and antennae.

They do not require electricity or power to work. As the detector gets closer to the reflector, the radar signals get stronger and the rescuer gets accurate information about the person buried in the snow.

Effective even in accidents like landslides.

Defense sources said that these reflectors will be installed on soldiers patrolling in avalanche-prone areas or engaged in other tasks.

Every soldier has to install 3 reflectors. The radars installed in the rescue system detect the soldier with these reflectors. Each such system can trace 50 soldiers at a time.

Sources said that when a person gets buried in the snow, the first 25 minutes are the most crucial for saving a life. Often in the snow, it is not known where the person is buried.

In such a situation, this new system will be very useful. According to sources, apart from avalanches, these systems can also be used to rescue victims trapped in landslides or building collapses.

For such tasks, the army can separately buy more defense systems.