“A Day in the Life of Air Enthusiasts”
Monami Guha Das and Debaditya Das write on and photograph the beauties in the skies at Aero India 2017
Air Enthusiasts Monami Guha Das and Debaditya Das write on and photograph “the beauties in the skies” at Aero India 2017.
Men in uniform have evoked myriad emotions in us since our childhood days: respect, awe, curiosity and pride, to name a few. We have grown up hearing about their feats, stories of their valour, chivalry and sacrifice. These are the men who serve our nation with unflinching grit and stoicism, guarding and protecting us while we sleep in the comfort of our homes. For us civilians, the armed forces form part of the folklore. We are assured by their existence every single second but they remain in the realm of our fantasy. The restricted world of the armed forces feed our curiosity about their lives and we live with the dream of sometime, someday stepping into their sacred arena and catching them live in action.
Aero India thus is an event that once in two years throws open the doors of a restricted military zone to the common man. Military and civil aircraft are unveiled and displayed, fighter jets do flypasts while aerobatic teams from different countries perform with their aircraft, leaving spectators mesmerised.
We made our maiden visit to Air Force Station Yelahanka on the very last day of the exhibition, after days of anticipation. Expecting a huge turnout on the final day, which happened to be a Saturday, we started early. We reached in time expecting to catch the morning display, but that was not to be! Absence of proper markings and signboards leading to the entry gates meant that we missed the gate for parking and pass collection. It took us three hours to turn back! With sinking hearts we saw many jets fly over us, as we remained trapped inside our car. Having driven for more than 5 hours, we became frustrated and decided to return home. But by a stroke of luck we found a private parking space, where we parked, grabbed a quick lunch and walked some 2 kilometres to reach the venue in time for the afternoon display.
And what a performance that was! The pilots lit up the sky with their gorgeous displays, which lifted our dampened spirits which was totally worth the pain of wading through traffic for hours! We found our very own desi HAL-manufactured Tejas, zooming past in all its glory. A proud moment for us all!
The Yakovlev Aerobatic Team from the UK performed brilliant stunts leaving people gaping in awe. And then it was time for our own Indian Air Force Surya Kiran team to take control of the skies with their orange and white beauties, the Hawks. Cutting through the air at lightning speed, the planes disappeared in the blink of an eye. We put away the cameras as it was futile to even attempt capturing them on lens. ‘ Brilliance’ is a small word for their performance. Sarangs the helicopter aerobatic team of the Indian Air Force was similarly impressive with their four HALmanufactured Dhruv helicopters.
Unfortunately we were short on time and could not visit the exhibition, and so missed out on a rare opportunity of interacting with some of then who stole our hearts with their performance–and a miss that will be regretted for a long time to come.
But the display was an experience of a lifetime and will be cherished. Seeing our pilots create magic in the sky, our own manufactured aircraft soaring high, was a moment of immense pride and left us choked with emotion. These were moments that will always remain etched in our memories.
For us, the countdown for Aero India 2019 has begun!