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File picture: An Indian air force AN-32 transport aircraft at an air force base in Srinagar. An Indian air force AN-32 plane has gone missing with 29 people. Image Credit: AFP

An Indian Air Force plane carrying 29 people went missing Friday on its way to Port Blair, capital of the Andaman and Nicobar islands, an air force spokesman said.

"A search operation is on. The plane was airborne at 8:30 am and was supposed to land at Port Blair at 11:30," Wing Commander Anupam Banerjee said.

The Russian-made AN-32 was on its way to Port Blair from the southeast city of Chennai when it disappeared from radar.

There were six crew on the aircraft, a workhorse of the air force.

A navy spokesman said surveillance planes and ships were searching for the aircraft. It was carrying service personnel to the strategic islands near the Malacca Straits, where India has a military base.

The Press Trust of India news agency reported AN-32s can fly for four hours without refuelling.

Last year, an Indian Coast Guard plane crashed south of Chennai, killing all three on board.