Father, son duo pilots helicopter in air fest

Air Vice Marshal Manavendra Singh (52) and his son Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Singh (27) ..... — ***Air Vice Marshal Manavendra Singh (52) and his son Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Singh (27) …..***

........both being felicitiated — ***……..both being felicitiated***

SHILLONG, OCT 1: It was indeed a rare moment to witness a father and son duo flying a Mi-17 V5 helicopter as pilots for the first time and it the exciting was not confined to the two but also the spectators who were at the three-day Air Fest 2016 at Upper Shillong organized as part of the Air Force Day celebrations.

Air Vice Marshal Manavendra Singh (52) is one of the senior most helicopter pilots in the Indian Air Force and has to his credit over 6700 hrs of flying. He is a qualified flying instructor and has instructed on various types of helicopters fixed wing aircraft in a career spanning nearly 35 years.

Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Singh (27) followed his father’s legacy and was commissioned in the year 2011 in the helicopter stream. The youngster has flown Mi-17 V5 and has represented his unit in various Air Force level exercises.

Being one of the few second generation families in uniform, it was a momentous and proud occasion for them. They were also felicitated by Air Marshal C Harikumar during the fest held at the Shillong Advance Landing Ground (ALG).

The Air Fest kicked off with a fly past of Mi-17 helicopters and Su-30 MKI aircraft and followed by the breathtaking display by the Indian Air Force ‘Air Devils’ team which carried out sky diving and free fall parajumps.

There was also a demonstration on slithering operations by GARUD, the elite commandos of the IAF.

Aero modeling, static display of Aircraft and performance by the military band were some of the highlights of the festival, which was witnessed by a large number of people, especially students from various schools and colleges.

Speaking to reporters, Eastern Air Command chief C Harikumar said, “It is a proud moment for us to be celebrating our 84th anniversary. We started from a humble beginning in 1932 and today we have become one of the finest and most professional air forces in the world.”

He said the credit has to be given to the predecessors who had the foresight and the planning to allow the organization to reach such a height.

“On our anniversary our main task is to look at what we have done in the last few years and take stock of what is happening and look what is required to be done for the future,” the EAC chief said.-By Our Reporter