Rare on-board footage adds to flying display
As many as 75 military aircraft participated in the grand finale of the 73rd Republic Day parade.
NEW DELHI: A flying display by 75 military aircraft marked the grand finale of the 73rd Republic Day parade, with breathtaking aerial shots and cockpit footage treating the viewers of India’s biggest ceremonial event to a rarely-seen visual delight, the best in many years.
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From five Rafale fighter jets flying in the Vinash formation to three Sukhoi-30s roaring across the sky in the Trishul formation (both arrowhead patterns) to 17 Jaguars coming together to draw ‘75’ above Rajpath to commemorate India’s 75th year of Independence, the Indian Air Force lived up to its reputation --- it delivered the highlight of the parade despite cloudy conditions.
“The fly-past coverage (aerial and cockpit footage) was the best it’s been in years, especially given the miserable weather,” said defence analyst Angad Singh.
The aircraft which took part in the fly-past, that lasted around 15 minutes, took off from several airbases in north India, including Ambala, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Hindan. The rehearsals lasted two weeks. The logistics involved aircraft and aircrews arriving to bases in north India from different parts of the country to practice for the fly-past.
It featured flying formations to commemorate some glorious moments of India’s decisive victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war, including the historic Tangail airdrop and the Meghna operation.
While the Tangail formation involved a vintage Dakota aircraft flying in lead with two Dornier 228 planes, the Meghna formation featured a CH-47F Chinook helicopter and four Mi-171V choppers. The painstakingly restored Dakota, the only one in IAF now, was gifted to IAF in 2018 by Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP and now the Union minister of state for IT, whose father served in the force.
The Tangail airdrop north of Dhaka --- the biggest airborne operation mounted by Indian paratroopers --- set the stage for surrender by the rival army.
The aim of the operation was to capture the Poongli bridge on Jamalpur-Tangail-Dhaka road and the ferry site on Louhajang river to intercept Pakistani army’s 93 Brigade that was retreating from the north to defend Dhaka. Around 750 men of the 2nd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment were involved in the successful mission.
The paratroopers defeated a force that was three times numerically superior and shattered the will of the Pakistani army to defend Dhaka.
The Meghna formation commemorated a critical heli-borne operation during the 1971 war. IAF helicopters played a critical role in moving troops across the Meghna river in erstwhile East Pakistan.
Other flying formations included Baaz (consisting of one Rafale, two Jaguars, two upgraded MiG-29s and two Su-30s) and Varuna (one naval P8-I aircraft and and two MiG-29Ks).
