Karnataka - Bidar   

Taking Suryakiran to new heights

Wg. Cdr. Sandeep Bansal

BIDAR: Suryakiran, the aerobatic team of the Indian Air Force, with its base in Bidar, took to new heights under the leadership of Wing Commander Sandeep Bansal.

On the eve of handing over command to Wing Commander Joy Thomas Kurein, Wg. Cdr. Bansal, who took charge of the team in June 2005, told The Hindu on Sunday that the Suryakiran team attained the status of 52-squadron in May 2006, which made it “independent.” Earlier, the Suryakirans were part of the Air Force Station, Bidar, since their inception in 1996. Wg. Cdr. Bansal will be joining the Flying Instructors School in Chennai as instructor.

The other countries which have aerobatic teams are the U.K. Canada, Egypt and Italy, he said.

The display of the Suryakiran team is more or less similar to that performed by teams from other countries. But, some changes had been introduced to make it more attractive, Wg. Cdr. Bansal said. “We tried to add more aircraft to the existing nine in the displays, but it did not look good,” he said.

Under Wg. Cdr. Bansal, the pilots changed the colour of their outfits, including helmets, from blue to red to match the colour of the aircraft in September 2006. “We were allowed to change colour as we were into display,” he said.

“Three aircraft were added to the existing fleet of 15 after I took over and the team has given 120 displays from Thiruvananthapuram in the south to Srinagar in the north and from Chabua in the east to Naliya in the west of the country,” he said.

A Vayu Sena medal winner in January 2008 for distinguished service and exceptional leadership, Wg. Cdr. Bansal said the Suryakirans had performed in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Langkawi. “The team has been invited to perform in Berlin, Germany, and in China this year,” he said.

“We have accomplished the objective of attracting youngsters to the air force. A few youngsters after joining the air force have told me that they were motivated after watching the airshows by the Suryakiran team,” he said.

After the airshows, many come for autographs and express their desire to become fighter pilots, he said.

According to Wg. Cdr. Bansal, aerobatic displays by the team of Suryakiran pilots are not just to entertain people at airshows but to motivate college students to join the air force, as many prefer to work in multinational companies.

“My association with the Suryakiran team has been exciting, very challenging and satisfying,” he said.

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