Indian Air Force Jaguars looking for missing climbers

In a unique mission, the Indian Air Force''s Jaguar deep-penetration strike aircraft have been flying sorties over the Garhwal Himalayas in an effort to trace five Indian Army mountain climbers, who went missing in a blizzard on 1 October.

Using newly installed infrared cameras the Jaguars have been flying sorties over the Nanda Devi massif, India''s second highest peak, over the past two days in an attempt to pick up traces of the missing climbers.

The air force is trying to make use of high frequency imaging cameras that the Jaguars are equipped with to pick up traces on the ground that might help locate the five missing climbers, which include an army Major and two Junior Commissioned Officers.

The Jaguars are carrying out their unique mission after a helicopter hunt failed to find any traces of the missing men. The army climbers were part of an 18-member expedition trying to scale the Nanda Devi East peak.

The last message from the missing men had said that they would reach their camp in an hour. Nothing more has either been heard or seen of them since.