Indian Air Force Day: 80 Aircraft To Touch Sky With Glory At Grand Show In Chandigarh

Chandigarh: The Indian Air Force (IAF) will put up a dazzling show with around 80 aircraft in Chandigarh on Saturday to celebrate its 90th anniversary.

This year, Indian Air Force Day will be celebrated in a different way as the parade and flypast will not take place in the national capital but over Sukhna lake in Chandigarh for the first time.

According to reports, vintage as well as modern aircraft like the Rafale, Prachand, Mi-35, Su-30, Jaguar, Mi-17, Chinook, Apache, Howard and Dakota will display different formations, including Ensign, Eklavya, Trishul, Mehar, Shamsher and Vajra. The Sarang and Suryakiran teams will also be part of the flypast.

People will also witness the indigenously made Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) ‘Prachand’, which will be part of the flypast in a three-aircraft formation.

Another formation, the Sekhon formation, dedicated to IAF officer and Param Vir Chakra recipient Nirmaljit Singh Sekhon, will include Rafale, Tejas, Jaguar and Mirage 2000, as per a TOI report.

The globe formation will be executed by the C-17 heavy-lift aircraft and nine Hawk-132 from the Suryakiran display team.

The Eklavya formation will be led by the Mi-35 attack helicopter with four Apache choppers, while the Big Boy formation will have the IL-76 and two AN-32 aircraft.

While some air formations are likely to be displayed before the arrival of President Droupadi Murmu, other formations will be carried out after she arrives.

The Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari will also unveil the new pattern of combat uniform for IAF personnel during the event, said reports.