India’s tank-carrying Gajraj transport jet reaches new heights near China frontier: Decoding IAF's latest feat

A transport aircraft that can carry a battle tank has landed at Nyoma in eastern Ladakh, bringing India’s heavy airlift capability closer to its northern deployments. At 13,629 feet, the touchdown was the highest ever achieved by an IL-76MD anywhere in the world, according to the Indian Air Force.

Known as “Gajraj”, the aircraft has a cargo hold large enough for a T-72 tank to be driven straight inside. Alternatively, it can carry three 6.5-tonne trucks, as per the Defence Ministry . That gives commanders a way to move bulky equipment quickly across long distances, alongside the wider effort to transport troops and supplies.

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Nyoma’s location makes that useful. Situated along the Indus, approximately 180 kilometres southeast of Leh, the airfield serves eastern Ladakh. The Defence Ministry’s 2024 review placed the upgraded Mudh-Nyoma project 46 kilometres from the Line of Actual Control. Its roughly 2.7-kilometre runway strengthens India’s ability to deploy and sustain forces near the China frontier.

Landing directly at Nyoma can shorten the onward journey for cargo destined for nearby formations. The IAF has published no verified hours-saved figure.

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The record also shows what operating at hogh altitude demands. Thinner air affects lift and aircraft performance, increasing landing distances. Payload, fuel, temperature and runway conditions must all be considered. The load carried on this flight has not been disclosed.

Nyoma has grown from an advanced landing ground into an upgraded base. An An-32 first landed there in September 2009. A C-130J arrival marked the upgraded base’s inauguration in November 2025, Reuters reported. This October, DRDO used Nyoma’s drop zone to test its indigenous high-altitude parachute.

India inducted the IL-76 in 1985. Since then, it has supported Siachen supply operations, delivered 22 tonnes of drinking water to the Maldives during its 2014 water crisis, and landed at Car Nicobar on a damaged runway after the 2004 tsunami. Nyoma adds another demanding destination to that operational record.