'You are to train three Bangladeshi pilots to fly this Chetak helicopter. Your task begins now.'
Bullets fly, the noise becomes unbearable and the plot finally ends with the hero doing an unbelievable leap on to the ski of the helicopter aka Schwarzenegger, flown by our pretty heroine. UFF UFF! Squirming in my seat, I ponder over what I have been through, sighs Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
The sky outside was a perfect blue with fair winds on that hot day in July, but inside the Jaguar an emergency was unraveling with every passing second. Wing Commander Vernon Desmond Keane had two options: Eject and see his beloved aircraft crash -- which would come at a great cost to the nation and cause harm to civilian life and property on the ground. Or try the limits of his training; push the aircraft and his flying skills to the edge of technical and human endurance and save them both.
'We flew all missions in the first part of the war at low levels; that is at 300 to 500 feet above the ground.' 'These sorties were no doubt stressful since the pilots and crew had to look out for birds and obstructions as well as enemy gunfire.'
Whether it's navigating the labyrinthine Cu Chi Tunnels, boating on the Mekong, marveling at ancient Champa temples, or the Mekong Bay, Vietnam promises a journey like no other.
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''I heard from the Pakistani brigadier that Flying Officer Pradeep Apte had been killed after he ejected safely and tried to escape. This news sent a chill up my spine. I had been lucky so far...'
'There was plenty of pushing, pulling and jostling going on as everyone wanted to see what was going on at the table.'
'Our air force can strike them with impunity.'
Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd) helps you shake off the last-minute jitters as you prepare for the UPSC National Defence Academy exam.
'My relationship with the Pataudi family was to help me to survive in 1971.'
According to the IAF official, 41 aircraft would participate in the flight display on the inaugural day while there would be 63 aircraft on static display.
'Since the rotors of a helicopter rotate at very high RPMs, if they hit an obstacle -- for example a tree, wire or pole, the result is catastrophic.'
The charter of affiliation was signed by General Naravane and Air Commodore Tarun Chaudhry of 17 Squadron.
Flight Lieutenant Adivitya Bal, who died along with Wing Commander Mohit Rana when their twin-seater MiG-21 trainer aircraft met with an accident near Barmer in Rajasthan, was laid to rest in Jammu on Saturday.
'Our men had suffered so much pain for the independence of other people in a foreign land.'
A nine day Indo-Russian joint air force exercise concluded at the Halwara Air Force Station in Punjab that saw fighter, helicopter and missile crew of the two countries operating together.
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The sports ministry cleared the final contingent that also features 140 support staff and officials, of which 72 "have been approved at cost to the Government" to meet the "requirements" of the travelling sportspersons.
'I propose to finish it soon, but till then you all will ensure that we strike hard at our enemy.' 'I will not accept any shortcomings or cowardice.'
Air Commodore Jawahar Lal Bhargava recalls how he ejected from his failing aircraft in Pakistan during the 1971 War.
'For god's sake, portray the armed forces in the correct manner,' asserts IAF veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe after watching Tejas.
Whether Rajeev Chandrasekhar wins or not, Thiruvananthapuram will likely never see such an interesting contest again.
After five months of a rigorous training, the Agniveervayus passed out of the Airmen Training School, impressing the audience with the skills they had acquired in just 22 weeks of training at the IAF base.
All work in the armed forces is team work. One has to deal with people all the time -- at work, play and even during war, advises IAF Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe.
A bonanza is in the offing for the senior ranks as the Defence Ministry has cleared proposals for creating more than 110 posts of Generals.
'As I set course for the Helicopter Training School this morning,' notes IAF Helicopter Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe, 'I bow my head in respect for the institution which made me the man I am.' 'I also salute the Chetak which taught me much more than flying.' 'Both these institutions, in their own right, justify the crest and motto of the School: Achievement through Knowledge.'
'They asked me if I was a devout Muslim and if I could recite the Kalma.' Flying Officer Jawahar Lal Bhargava knew his game was up. 'They threatened me with dire consequences if I didn't tell the truth.'
When the IAF veterans' bail petition came up for hearing, in an unprecedented move, senior serving and retired Air Marshals and Air Vice Marshals rallied behind the accused officers and appeared before the court to give sureties for each, something that has never happened ever before.
The Indian Air Force has evacuated over 400 flood-affected people across Assam in the past 20 days as relief helicopters and transport planes are on round-the-clock standby. Air Commodore P E Patange of the Eastern Air Command said besides airlifting 400 marooned persons from various parts of the state, the IAF also airlifted dozens of tonnes of relief material for distribution.
The Sukhoi-30 Mki was formally inducted at the Air Force Station at Chabua base in Assam on Tuesday. The induction was done through a ceremony with the inaugural flight of the SU 30 MKI taking off which also performed a overshoot before landing, according to a defence source.
As Kolkata marches towards modernity, it is hard to imagine its streets without these cabs, notes Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
'Companies are coming to the campuses, and we have companies booking their slots for the placement season, but the overall number of companies signing is low, and the hiring numbers are also lower.'
A Court of Inquiry into the incident has been ordered.
Not only is there a possibility for a conventional retaliation by Pakistan, there could also be terror attacks.
Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari, who will head the IAF from October 1, will keep our fighting capabilities sharpened and operationally ready for conflict at all times, notes Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
'I was a young pilot in the IAF and Tom Cruise (with his genuine Ray-Bans) was now an icon with his sensational performance in Top Gun.' 'The IAF, maybe influenced by the movie, decided to 'issue' pilots Ray-Bans as part of their flying kit,' remembers IAF Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe.
'Wanting to see the bright side of things, we always told ourselves, 'It could have been worse!', when the situation got tough.' Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd), who helped rebuild the IAF's Car Nicobar air base after the 2004 tsunami, recalls the devastation on United Nations World Tsunami Awareness Day.
The aircraft roared over Islamabad, the nearby garrison city of Rawalpindi and other cities this afternoon as Air Force spokesman Air Commodore Humayun Viqar Zephyr said in a statement: "in view of the current environment, PAF has enhanced its vigilance."
There is no plot, no central story line or theme. It appears Atlee felt if he put a Shah Rukh Khan (there are two of them actually!) on screen doing just about anything, the film would sell, sighs Nitin Sathe.
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