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{{short description|Naval air station in India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox airport
| name = INS Rajali
| nativename =
| image =
| image-width =
| caption =
| IATA =
| ICAO = VOAR
| type = [[Naval Air Station]]
| owner =
| operator = [[Indian Navy]]
| city-served =
| location = [[Arakkonam]], [[Ranipet district]], [[Tamil Nadu]]
| elevation-f = 285
| elevation-m =
| coordinates = {{Coord|13|04|16|N|079|41|28|E|type:airport|display=inline,title}}
| website =
| metric-elev =
| metric-rwy =
| r1-number = 06/24
| r1-length-f = 13,460
| r1-length-m = 4,103
| r1-surface = [[Asphalt concrete]]
| stat-year =
| stat1-header =
| stat1-data =
| stat2-header =
| stat2-data =
| footnotes =
}}

'''INS Rajali''', {{Airport codes|N/A|VOAR}} is an Indian [[naval air station]] located near [[Arakkonam]], [[Ranipet district]], [[Tamil Nadu]] in southern [[India]]. It operates under the [[Southern Naval Command]] of the Indian Navy,<ref>{{cite web|title=Eastern Naval Command Authorities & Units|url=http://indiannavy.nic.in/about-indian-navy/enc-authorities-units|publisher=Indian Navy|access-date=5 April 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822140334/http://indiannavy.nic.in/about-indian-navy/enc-authorities-units|archive-date=22 August 2013}}</ref> and has the longest military runway in [[Asia]].<ref name=wad-voar>{{cite web|url-status=usurped|url=http://worldaerodata.com/wad.cgi?airport=VOAR|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190305143444/http://worldaerodata.com/wad.cgi?airport=VOAR|archive-date=2019-03-05|title=Airport information for VOAR|website=World Aero Data}} Data current as of October 2006.</ref>

==History==
The airfield at '''Arakkonam''' was constructed in early 1942, for use by [[Allies of World War II]]. The first recorded air operations from the field took place when the No. 2 Squadron of the [[Royal Indian Air Force]], flying [[Westland Lysander]] aircraft flew support missions for the [[British Indian Army]] between May and Sep 1942.

The airfield was abandoned after the war and lay unused until the 1980s, when it was transferred to the Indian Navy who rehabilitated and commissioned the airfield as ''INS Rajali''. INS Rajali was commissioned on 11 March 1992. The commissioning commanding officer was Captain RS Vasan, who subsequently retired in the rank of commodore while on deputation to the Coast Guard as the Regional
Commander of Coast Guard Region East. Rajali, named after a bird, was commissioned by then [[President of India|President]] [[R. Venkataraman]]. The upgraded airbase became home to an [[anti-submarine warfare]] squadron, INAS 312, which moved here from [[INS Hansa]] in [[Goa]]. On 16 April 1988, the [[Tupolev Tu-142]]MK-E aircraft were commissioned into the squadron by the then [[Minister of Defence (India)|Defence Minister]], [[K. C. Pant]], at [[INS Hansa]]. The Albatross as they are called celebrated the silver jubilee of induction at Rajali.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiannavy.nic.in/content/tu-142m|title=INAS 312 – The Albatross|publisher=Indian Navy|access-date=10 December 2015}}</ref> The replacement aircraft for the TU 142 M are P8i Poseidon and eight of them have started operating from Rajali. The Helicopter Training School which operated from INS Garuda was shifted to Rajali from July 1991 in the year of commissioning itself and has been training rotary-wing pilots of the Navy and the Coast Guard ever since. This self-contained base celebrated its silver jubilee on 11 March 2017. Boeing will establish a training facility spanning 60,000 sq ft for the [[Boeing P-8 Poseidon|P-8I Neptune]] by 2021.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/indian-navy-looking-at-more-p-8i-submarine-killers-admiral-lanba/articleshow/62484276.cms|title=Indian Navy looking at more P-8I 'submarine killers': Admiral Lanba|date=2018|work=The Economic Times|access-date=2018-01-13}}</ref>

INS Rajali now spans {{convert|2320|acre|km2}} and has the longest military runway in [[Asia]].<ref name=in-nas>{{cite web|url=http://indiannavy.nic.in/NavalAvnWebsite/NavalAirStations.htm|title=Naval Air Stations|publisher=Indian Navy|access-date=2011-08-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810053816/http://indiannavy.nic.in/NavalAvnWebsite/NavalAirStations.htm|archive-date=2011-08-10|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==2015 Floods==
During the [[2015 South India Floods]] when [[Chennai International Airport]] was closed due to floodwaters, INS Rajali was used as a makeshift airport for relief operations as well as limited commercial flights.<ref>{{cite news|title=Floodwaters recede as Chennai rain eases|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35003353|access-date=7 December 2015|work=BBC|date=4 December 2015}}</ref> Some passengers had been brought from flooded areas by helicopter.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Josephine|first1=Serena|title=500 passengers flown out of INS Rajali|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/500-passengers-flown-out-from-ins-rajali/article7950873.ece|access-date=7 December 2015|work=The Hindu|date=5 December 2015}}</ref> Commuter services on the [[Chennai Suburban Railway]] were operated from [[Arakkonam Junction]] for the benefit of passengers coming by air through Rajali.<ref>{{cite news|title=Beach-Arakkonam train service on|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/beacharakkonam-train-service-on/article7950723.ece|access-date=7 December 2015|work=The Hindu|date=6 December 2015}}</ref>

==Units==
INS Rajali is home to the navy's [[INAS 312]] squadron which operates [[Boeing P-8 Poseidon#Variants|P-8I Neptune]]

==See also==
; Indian navy
* [[List of Indian Navy bases]]
* [[List of active Indian Navy ships]]

; Integrated commands and units
* [[Armed Forces Special Operations Division]]
* [[Defence Cyber Agency]]
* [[Integrated Defence Staff]]
* [[Integrated Space Cell]]
* [[Nuclear Command Authority (India)|Indian Nuclear Command Authority]]
* [[Indian Armed Forces]]
* [[Special Forces of India]]

; Other lists
* [[Strategic Forces Command]]
* [[List of Indian Air Force stations]]
* [[List of Indian Navy bases]]
* [[List of countries with overseas military bases#India|India's overseas military bases]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Airports in India}}
{{Indian Navy}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:INS Rajali}}
[[Category:Airports in Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Indian Naval Air Stations|Rajali]]
[[Category:1942 establishments in India]]
[[Category:Airports established in 1942]]
[[Category:1992 establishments in Tamil Nadu]]

INS Rajali - Revision history

Bot at 11:37, 19 August 2022