Tamil Nadu   

A rare chance for 22 children

Special Correspondent

Madras Flying Club organises a 10-minute sortie

VELLORE: Several children, mostly inmates of the Government Children's Home, run by the Social Welfare Department at Abdullapuram here, got a rare chance of travelling by an aircraft on Wednesday, thanks to the initiative of Vellore Collector Dharmendra Pratap Yadav and the Madras Flying Club.

The occasion was the World Tourism Day, and the joy ride was provided by the Club at the civil aerodrome at Anpoondi near here.

"I saw houses, cars and lorries from the plane," gushed V. Indu, a Standard II student, after a 10-minute sortie in the FA-152 Cessna training aircraft.

"I saw buses, streets and dogs from the plane," said V. Hemalatha.

Standing in a queue in the sprawling grass-covered runway in the small aerodrome, the curious children were eagerly awaiting their turn to board the plane.

Sponsored by Collector

Besides the 10 inmates of the Government Children's Home, 12 children of Gurukulam Trust Children School at Panayur near Chennai, also enjoyed the ride. R. Nandkumar, Honorary Secretary of the club, said the ride for the 22 children were sponsored by the Vellore Collector and the MFCL.

The club is going to organise a joy ride for the public in the aerodrome here from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 8. Those interested would be charged Rs.700 a sortie of 10 minutes.

The Collector would notify places where joy rides could be booked, he said.

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