New Delhi, Sep 18 (IANS): The India Air Force Thursday handed over a Dakota aircraft from the IAF museum to the Bangladesh Air Force, following a request from Bangladesh for the plane that played a pivotal role in the country's liberation.

The aircraft was gifted by Western Air Command chief Air Marshal S.S. Soman to Bangladesh Air chief chief, Air Marshal Muhammad Enamul Bari, who is currently on a visit to India.

The Dakota aircraft, one of the pioneers of the transport fleet of the Indian Air Force, has played a major role in the history of the Indian air force, especially in the 1947-48 war in Jammu and Kashmir, and the 1971 war which led liberation of Bangladesh and the formation of the Bangladesh Air Force.

The Dakota was the first transport aircraft that was landed at height of 11,500 feet in Leh by then Wing Commander Mehar Singh in 1947-48.

The aircraft was used for transporting troops in Srinagar during the 1947-48 war and also for the famous Tangail drop, the biggest and most ambitious air drop operation since World War II, in the 1971 war.