Air Force Performs Breathtaking Manoeuvres At Air Display In Chennai

April 21st, 2007

Chennai citizens can look forward to a thrilling Sunday morning. Fighter planes of the Air Force will show the might of air defence, the pilots their skill. The show began at Tambaram this morning and can be seen on the Marina on Sunday. It is part of the IAF’s platinum jubilee celebrations, which began at Tambaram today.

Enthusiastic crowds thronged the IAF station. The old were as excited as the children, in fact the latter seemed more restrained and broke out in joy after the display which lasted from 9 am till about noon. Prominent among the guests were families of airmen.

Colourful manoeuvres by the Suryakiran acrobatic team, a flypast by the Jaguar team, para-jumping by Akash Ganga team which dived from about 2,500 metres to a free fall of 1,500 metres were the major attractions.
In a scintillating display of manoeuvres, the steel birds possessed by the Indian Air Force treated the family members of airmen and other employees of IAF to a visual feast, at the IAF base near Chennai. As a precursor to the public show here at the marina beach on Sunday, the pilots and other performers warmed themselves up, before a select audience and displayed the skills of flying, marked by precision and controlled by coordination.

Aerobatics by the HPT-32 alias Deepak, the mighty jaguar which went air-borne from Bangalore, the dare-devil Sarang helicopter team and a rifle drill by the air warriors were part of the itinerary.

The much-awaited Sarang team of choppers, an elite possession of display machines of the IAF, enthralled the audience with their stunts, flying at a height of 20 metres above the ground.

However, it was the Suryakiran aerobatic team which turned out to be a big hit with the crowd. Nine Kiran MKII craft delighted the crowd with their manoeuvres, painting the skies with the tricolour or creating the rising sun image using smoke trails.

The show culminated with the para-jumpers of the Akash Ganga team descending from an mi-8 chopper, at 7,000 feet, to a smooth touch down.

Organised as part of the IAF’s platinum jubilee celebrations, the event was an invitation for the youth to join the IAF, a top official told reporters after the event.

Air Commodore MS Ahluwalia, Air-Officer-Commanding, IAF, Tambaram, described the show spectacular.
Source: India Defence