Bengaluru: The 12th edition of Aero India took off at Air Force Station Yelahanka here on Wednesday by offering tributes to Wg Cdr Sahil Gandhi, who died in the Surya Kiran crash yesterday.
As a tribute to Wg Cdr Sahil Gandhi, a 'Missing Man' formation was flown by Jaguar, Tejas and Sukhoi. The Jaguar was piloted by Wg Cdr Avasthi (R) of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Tejas by Wg Cdr Siddharth of National Flight Test Centre and Sukhoi by Wg Cdr Prashanth Nair of Indian Air Force, now posted to HAL.
The organisers are claiming that the ‘Plane Carnival’ will be the largest air show in Asia with a series of first-time events waiting in the wings to be unfolded in the next five days.
Speaking on the occasion Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that India provides a runway of billion opportunities in aerospace and defence. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inspired manufacturing sector in defence to take on the challenges so as to make aerospace components in India, she said.
“Bengaluru has made a mark in contributing to the GDP of India. World-class aerospace structures come from here and through innovation. More procurement orders are given to Indian vendors so that they can start producing in India,” Nirmala Sitharaman said.
The minister went on to elaborate on various policy initiatives taken by the government.
Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre said India has introduced procedural reforms in defence manufacturing.
“We have space for everyone including of DPSUs, private firms and others. Aero India Show is a mega event that showcases India's capabilities and strength in aerospace," he said.
Over 60 desi and videsi flying machines are at the show for both flying and static duties. Over 400 exhibitors are participating in the show this year.
On a clear and visible Wednesday morning, the flypast began at 10:15 am. During the flypast, the first aircraft to fly in was the resurrected Dakota DC-3 aircraft (Parshuram) of 1940 vintage. The Dakota was flown by Group Capt Ajay Menon.
This was followed by HAL’s choppers LUH and ALH flying the Beem formation. This was followed by the formation of ALH Rudras. The LCH presented a Dhanush formation enthralling the crowd. The HTT-40 too flew in along with Hawk-i and DO-228.
From today, as reported by Onmanorama earlier, there will be two sessions of flying display on all five days.
The Flying Display Director for Aero India 2019 is Group Capt Group Capt Badarish Athreya. He is a Chief Test Pilot at the Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment of the IAF.
