Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 14: On the occasion on 76 years of accession of J&K into Indian Union and the `Diamond Jubilee’ of Air Force Station Jammu, the IAF and Govt of JK UT combined is organising a grand and spectacular `Air Show’.
The Air Show will have the world famous IAF Air Warrior Drill team (AWDT), the `Aakashganga Daredevil Skydiving’ team, `Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team’ (SKAT), MI-17 helicopters and the IAF band.
Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft is also expected to showcase low level aerobatics and maneuvering. The world renowned teams of Indian Air Force will carry out a display at Air Force Station Jammu from 0930-1100 on Sep 21-22, 2023.
The marquee event will showcase the scintillating and speculator display of precision flying and performance by nine aircraft team, flying Hawk Mk-132, Mi-17 medium lift helicopters showcasing the slithering and Small Team Insertion and Extraction techniques, free fall para jumpers and precision drill movements by AWDT.
The SKAT, also the 52 Sqn of IAF, was formed in 1996, the team has completed more than 600 displays across the length and breadth of the country and abroad. It is one of the very few nine aircraft display teams in the world. 130 Helicopter Unit which is a resident unit of Jammu, will be showcasing the helicopter operations and with the Garud Commandos of IAF.
The Air Warrior Drill Team “Subroto” (AWDT) is the ceremonial drill team of Indian Air Force, being a platoon-sized formation. It was founded in 2004 as the first of precision exhibition drill unit of its kind in the Indian Armed Forces. `Akash Ganga’ is the 14 member sky diving team of the Indian Air Force. It was created in August 1987. Akash Ganga can be roughly translated in Hindi as “The Ganga of the sky”, an ancient Hindi name for the Milky Way as viewed from the earth.
The Air Warrior Symphony Orchestra (AWSO) is the concert band unit of the IAF Band. Formed in June 2002, the AWSO consists of hand-picked musicians from the seven IAF Bands across the country. The AWSO has performed at many concerts across the world in countries like France, Italy, Germany, Malaysia, Singapore, and Bangladesh.
The display will showcase the operational capability of the Indian Air Force with an aim to motivate youth to join the elite service. This event will also aim to sensitise general public the hazards for aviation and how can they assist in aviation safety. The display will be open to general public apart from schools, Air veterans, Civil dignitaries and personnel of Defence forces and Air Force Station Jammu. Lt Governor Manoj Sinha will be the chief guest for the event.
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