BENGALURU: With a vision to showcase India as a force to reckon with in the defence space, Aero India 2023 took off to a scintillating start on Monday, showing off a significant chunk of the country’s military aviation arsenal to an excited bunch of spectators.
The day was hot, but the mood was cheerful. All eyes were transfixed on the sky above Air Force Station Yelahanka to catch a glimpse of a metal bird or two cutting through the air. Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived to inaugurate the biennial air show, a quartet of Mi-17 helicopters, each carrying a flag — of India, Aero India, G20, and the Indian Air Force ensign, thundered over the runway, marking the beginning of flight proceedings to take place over the next few days.
This was followed by the rotary might of nine helicopters, led by the Light Utility Helicopter, along with some Advanced Light Helicopters Mark 3 of the Indian Coast Guard, ALH Mark 4 Rudra of the Indian Army, the Light Combat Helicopter Prachand, and the ALH Mark 1 of the IAF (Sarang). The idea was to display some fine aircraft inventory from HAL’s stable. Accordingly, Aero India’s fly-past involved several aircraft flying in intricate, yet death-defying formations.
For instance, four types of fighter aircraft — MiG 29, Rafale, Jaguar and Mirage 2000 — flew in the Arjun formation, while a fleet of LCAs roared across in the Arrow formation. The dance in the air was also interspersed by graceful glides from IAF’s AEW&CS Embraer, the C-17 Globemaster, and the Indian Navy’s P8i multi-mission patrol aircraft.
Post the inauguration, the sky came alive again with the onset of speed and sound. The Su-30 MKI took to the sky and performed some daring manoeuvres, including the loop and slice, as the crowd below cheered. The LUH Prachand that followed packed some of its own punches, such as the rapid pull-up. With people awaiting the arrival of LCA Tejas, the compact, yet lethal fighter swiftly became airborne and showed off its capabilities. The cherry on the cake is indeed in the end.
The nine-plane Suryakiran aerobatics team is always a crowd favourite. When the red-and-white aircraft took off, the mood became as exciting as it did nail-bitingly. To celebrate the Valentine’s Day mood, three of the aircraft even drew an arrow through the heart in the sky, with smoke, much to the glee of spectators.
With the hymn being Atmanirbhar Bharat, India is leaving no stone unturned to present itself as not just a major defence market, but also one that can sustain itself through self-reliance, while producing wares for others. Aero India is testimony to that vision, as the PM stated: “Today, Aero India is India’s strength and not just a show.”
Chief at the helm
There was a special Gurukul formation as part of the flying display during the inauguration of Aero India 2023. This was led by an LCA Tejas, flown by Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, himself, whose aircraft was flanked by a Hawk, IJT, and HTT 40, as part of the formation.
Defence Secretary Aramane meets 3 foreign delegations
Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane held bilateral meetings with three defence delegations, including the delegates from the US, on Sunday. He met a US delegation led by Jedijiah P Royal, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, accompanied by Ambassador Elizabeth Jones, Charge D’Affairs US Embassy and Maj Gen Julian Cheator, US Air Force. A wide range of ongoing and future defence cooperation issues was discussed.
Giridhar Aramane also met Engr Turki Saad, General Manager, Industrial Relations, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and discussed a number of bilateral defence cooperation issues, besides holding talks with a delegation from Oman led by Mohammed Nasser Al Zaabi, Secretary General, Ministry of Defence. The ongoing defence cooperation was reviewed and possible opportunities for increasing the depth and scope of engagements were discussed.