The Indian Air Force is set to conduct a mega airshow on Marina Beach in Chennai on the occasion of the 92nd Air Force Day on October 6.
Taking objection to the training being imparted to Sri Lankan Air Force personnel at an Indian Air Force base near Chennai, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalaithaa on Thursday urged the Centre to immediately cancel the programme and send back the personnel to the island nation.
Will Modi 3.0 also see theaterisation of India's armed forces?
An immaculate ceremonial parade, a breath-taking aerial demonstration of firepower and a spectacular static display of state-of-the-art equipment marked the celebrations of the 92nd anniversary of the Indian Air Force at the Air Force Station, Tambaram in Chennai, October 8, 2024.
If I were to explain stealth to a layperson, I'd ask them to think of the game chupan-chupai (hide and seek) we played as children, explains Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd).
"The water level in the city has gone down considerably after initial days of flooding. Since Saturday evening all aerial rescue and relief operations have been called off. There are no further communications from either Tamil Nadu government or Centre to carry them out as the city is slowly returning to normalcy," a top IAF official told PTI on Sunday.
Eight Sri Lankan Air Force personnel who came to Tambaram Air Force station in Chennai on Monday for training have been sent back to their country, following a demand made by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to the Centre. The personnel were sent back to Sri Lanka on Tuesday night after instructions in this regard were issued by the Centre, an official release said on Wednesday.
Defence aircraft as also a couple of civilian ones ferried people to Delhi and Hyderabad since morning even as the Indian air Force flew sorties to bring more people to the naval base that has played a critical role in the overall operations.
The plane went missing on Friday while flying from Chennai to Port Blair with 29 people on board.
The 125 Helicopter Squadron (Gladiators) since its formation in November 1983 has enhanced its operational capability over the years and earned accolades for its valour and strike capabilities when deployed internally as well as abroad.
In a precarious mission, Wing Commander Charles Simon and Squadron Leader S Venkatramanan and crew rescued a woman in labour from atop a water tank in Chennai. She delivered twins! Archana Masih/Rediff.com spoke to the pilots about that dramatic day.
Rescue and relief operations continued in full swing in Chennai with over a hundred people taken to safety by teams of Army, IAF and NDRF, including a seven-month pregnant woman who was airlifted on Thursday from one of the worst-affected areas in the flooded city.
Meanwhile, the search and rescue team is seeking satellite imagery to find any clue of the plane that lost contact over the Bay of Bengal.
Residents of this hamlet have been thronging the house of 24-year-old Airman Pritam Chand since the day the IAF aircraft went missing.
Battling choppy weather, power crisis, inundated streets and the odds, the students, with a few girls among them, survived through the tough times, keeping each other strong.
The government said relief activities have been expedited and that efforts to pump out stagnant water were on in different places in the city.
IAF's four fighter pilots undergoing rigorous training for the landmark Gaganyaan mission, and who earned the 'astronaut wings' on Tuesday, have a stellar resume. They have a flying experience in the range of nearly 2,000-3,000 hours and two of them are recipients of the prestigious 'Sword of Honour'.
An emotionally overwhelmed Karthik, father of the twins, is in awe of the IAF now, and says, "I salute these brave men."
A dozen people lost their lives in various rain-related incidents in and around Chennai while personnel on fishing boats and farm tractors were engaged in rescuing stranded people on Tuesday.
Under attack from all political parties, including ruling United Progressive Alliance key ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Centre on Friday decided to "send off" the Sri Lankan airmen from the Indian Air Force station at Tambaram where they were undergoing training.
Commissioned on December 14, 1974 in the fighter stream of the IAF, Raha has held various command, staff and instructional appointments in his 39-year-old career.
This is perhaps the first categorical statement by the government on the fate of the 29 people on board the IAF workhorse.
"The voting percentage is likely to go upwards when reports from all polling stations are obtained as polling is scheduled till 6 pm in many constituencies. Final figures will be known on Saturday after the scrutiny of form 17A," the EC said.
5 planes and 13 ships are out trying to track the aircraft, which was carrying 29 people on board.
Over 600 people including more than 130 university students and an old French couple were taken to safety on Friday by a coordinated team of defence and NDRF personnel.
Pride was writ large on the faces of naval staff at Arakkonam Base that is playing a stellar and critical role in carrying out the rescue and relief operations for people affected by the torrential rains in Chennai.
Air Marshal Arup Raha, an ace fighter pilot, on Tuesday took over as the Indian Air Force chief succeeding Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne.
The army and air force have been deployed for rescuing stranded citizens after torrential rains have left residents marooned.
The Indian Air Force has pressed into service three aircraft to evacuate hundreds of passengers stranded at the Chennai airport where operations were suspended due to heavy rains and water logging on the runway.
If the two Dravidian parties up the rhetoric it increases the risk of Tamil Nadu becoming a safe haven for Tamil extremism with serious implications for national security. As these developments affect Sri Lanka's internal security, it would kindle legitimate concerns in Colombo, says Colonel (retd) R Hariharan.
Abhi comes from a family which has served the Indian Air Force since World War II when his grandfather Simhakutty was a member of the air force.
Sachin Tendulkar has expressed confidence that the Indian team will give their best and do something special for the countrymen to smile in the World Cup.
In a statement in the House, the chief minister said air ambulance service would be started at a cost of Rs 10 crore to transport critical patients to hospitals.
'This week will be crucial and we are prepared.'
Announcing the start of day-time domestic commercial operations, the Airports Authority of India said on Saturday night that decision on night operations would be taken on Sunday.
On challenges being faced in the search operations, Bargotra said the weather which was bad had improved since Sunday.
Muthukrishnan was one of the passengers on the IAF flight that has gone missing in the Bay of Bengal.
A relatively dry spell in Chennai and its neighbourhood brought relief to the flood affected residents and rescue agencies, as hopes of water receding fast went up.
Tamil Nadu continued to experience monsoon fury, with heavy rains pounding various parts of the state under the influence of a well marked low pressure area over Bay of Bengal, as the death toll from rain-related incidents climbed to 59.
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