Meet IAF top guns who choreographed aerial ballet

By Anantha Krishnan M
(Pix: Ishan Gore) 

The American F-16 Fighting Falcons were the last planes to fly out of Air Force Station Yelahanka on February 28, exactly four days after the curtains were drawn on an unforgettable Plane Carnival in India’s Aviation Capital, Bengaluru. 

In fact, when the border skirmishes between India and Pakistan reached a crescendo with Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman downing an intruding Pakistani F-16, back at AFS Yelahanka the US fighters probably from a different block, were ready to bid goodbye to Indian soil, sans any attention. The Rafales, A400M and C-17 too were among the flying machines that had late check-outs from the base. 

Onmanorma was cleared to interact with a bunch of highly-skilled pilots and Test Pilots of Indian Air Force (IAF), who were hand-picked to ‘police the planes’ during the sky ballet at the show. Far away from the media glare and any spotlight whatsoever, the Flight Display Director’s (FDD) team, was among the many unsung teams which toiled hard behind the show. 

Group Captain Badhrish N Athreya, nicknamed Bads, was the Flight Display Director for Aero India 2019. A Chief Test Pilot with Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE), this Bangalorean is a fighter pilot from the MiG-29 Fulcrums, a Pilot Attack Instructor (PAI), a Qualified Flying Instructor (QFI) and of course an Experimental Test Pilot (ETP). He has flown more than 3,200 hours on 25 different types of aircraft. His team members were: 

* Wing Commander B S Reddy (Reddy Garu), a Sukhoi pilot, a Fighter Combat Leader (FCL) and a Test Pilot with more than 2,500 hours of flying on 20+ types of aircraft. 

* Squadron Leader P K Thakur (PKT) a Himachali, and Sqn Ldr A Subramanian (Subbu) a Bangalorean — both Sukhoi pilots and QFIs — with 2,000+ hours of flying on 20+ types of aircraft, each. 

* Wing Commander Tripathi (Trips), a Qualified Navigation Instructor from ASTE who has flown more than 5,000 hours was the administrative coordinator of the FDD. 

* Group Captain Ramji Yadov (Ramjet), another Fulcrum pilot belonging to Chennai and an ex-Surya Kiran pilot himself, was the HQ Training Command representative. 

Assisting the FDD team with enthralling commentary were Wg Cdr Paramjeet Singh (PJ), a navigator with 8,000+ hours of flying. He was assisted by Squadron Leaders Arpita Mukherjee, Sonia and Zuffila all women officers of the IAF, well experienced in doing commentary at various air shows of the IAF. 

And, PJ could take off at very short notice, if you were on his strike zone, with a request to sing a Hindi song! 

Read the full story, here: bit.ly/2Hgntv9

Watch #TarmakTalking, here:   https://bit.ly/2HoagiY

AFS Yelahanka offers plug-and-play options for Aero India

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Aero India 2017: Training activities fly out to nearby bases from AFS Yelahanka

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Aero India 2017: One month for plane carnival; security top priority

By Anantha Krishnan M

Bengaluru, Jan 14: Devotees chasing ‘things with wings’ will descend on Aeronautical Capital of India soon for the ‘11th International Show on Aerospace, Defence, Civil Aviation, Airport Infrastructure and Defence Engineering’ a.k.a. Aero India 2017. 

Exactly one month from today, from February 14 to 18, all roads will lead to Air Force Station (AFS) Yelahanka, which has been hosting all editions of Aero India since 1996. 

While the 10th edition, in 2015, saw a record participation of exhibitors, the organisers say a new benchmark will be set this time. With the extended Christmas and New Year Holidays finally getting over, more foreign companies are expected to make a last-minute pitch in the next 15 days.

“As of now, we have sold out 100 per cent of the space allotted for exhibitors. There will be now another set of booking till the end of January, with the holiday season getting over,” says an official. 

Read full report, here: http://bit.ly/2iuHmkd

#PlaneCarnival: Phil Camp -- Capturing the best of IAF with pure devotion

By Dr Anantha Krishnan M

https://twitter.com/writetake

Photos: A Veeramani

Phil Camp first shot the photo of a flying machine when he was 16 years old. It was at the Oxford Airport, in 1973.

“Well, it as a Bollow 105 helicopter,” recalls Phil, one of the world’s leading aviation photo-journalists, when OneIndia caought up with him for an interaction at Aero India 2015. “I used my brother’s Russian-made Zenith camera,” he adds. 

At 57 years now, Phil seems to have lost some hair, but not his passion to chase planes, especially being operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF). Hailing from Southend-on-Sea, on the banks of river Thames, Phil dreamt of becoming an Air Traffic Controller one day.

“That was my dream right from when I was a kid of 10 years. But as I grew up, I realised I am colour blind and could not become a pilot, ATC or any other jobs related to flying. So the best way was to admire aviation was through photography as a hobby,” says Phil, who has over 25,000 slides on aircraft.

For the last 37 years, as the Director of Aero Rep Limited, he looks after spare parts distribution of four US-based companies in the UK and Europe.

This report appeared on OneIndia on 22 Feb 2015. Full report here: http://bit.ly/1vpfikA

#PlaneCarnival: 400 cameras keep a close watch on air show venue

By Dr Anantha Krishnan M

https://twitter.com/writetake

Photos: A Veeramani

The 10th edition of Aero India saw the security levels setting new benchmarks with a mix of technology and smart coordination by multiple agencies working 24x7.

During a visit to the Operations Control Centre (OCC), functioning from a make-shift, yet spacious building, OneIndia witnessed a host of activities being coordinated with precision.

For the first time, 400 cameras are capturing the activities from every nook and corner of Air Force Station Yelahanka. “Out of these, 350 cameras are being monitored by a 25-member team, while cameras fitted near the gates and periphery walls are 50 under the control of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF),” an official said.

There are 14 cameras with the PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) features, giving an extra edge to the operators. “The zooming option helps us to narrow down on any suspicious movements. We can back-up the videos for 10 days,” the official said.

This report appeared on OneIndia on 21 Feb 2015. Full report here: http://bit.ly/1AYG8mi

#PlaneCarnival: Team ATC keeps a hawk-eye vigil on flying displays

OneIndiaDefence Desk

It’s curtains for the 10th edition of Aero India today at Air Force Station Yelahanka. Among the unsung heroes, who have stayed far away from the limelight, the Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower team have played a silent, yet critical role.

With the number of participants at the flying display sharply increasing during every show, the role of the ATC has doubled and their responsibilities becoming more vital.

At AFS Yelahanka, the Flight Display Control cabin is positioned at a specially-erected cabin. A highly-qualified team from the Aircraft Systems & Testing Establishment (ASTE), one of the premier institutions of the Indian Air Force (IAF), keeps a hawk-like vigil on all proceedings.

According to Group Capt T K Singha, Chief PRO, Ministry of Defence (MoD), Kolkata, contrary to belief it is not the ATC controller who orchestrates the aerial choreography.

This report appeared on OneIndia on 22 Feb 2015. Full report here: http://bit.ly/1MJXbvp

#PlaneCarnival | Shutterbug Rahul does it again; goes on shooting spree for 007!

Photo: Rahul Devnath

#PlaneCarnival | Snapshots from Aero India 2015

Photos: skyMAN