Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Madurai
Mangalore
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
Kings of the high seas
|
The Indian Navy dazzled Mangaloreans with its electrifying offshore exercises
|
The helicapter pilot performing some stunning aerobatics in his chetak.
IT WAS an evening to remember at Panambur beach last Friday. The sky was clear with only a few birds on their way home after a long day of foraging. But the star attractions were the Indian Navy's vessels Jamuna, Sharda and Malpe, which were conducting their exercises just a few hundred meters away as a part of Navy Day celebrations.
Along with the sound of waves breaking on the beach, one of the Navy's Chetak helicopters took off from the Jamuna, a survey ship. The chopper pilot then performed some stunning aerobatics, sometimes practically skimming the waves, and dropped commandos into the sea. Then, as dusk approached, the pilot set his bird back on the decks of the Jamuna.
There was more to follow. The offshore patrol vessel Sharda opened up her Bofors anti-aircraft artillery at simulated targets in the air. This lit up the sky with a brilliant string of tracers.
The minesweeper Malpe then fired at an artificial target in middle of the sea. There was a loud explosion and the air was soon thick with fumes. The Malpe is part of the 20th Mine Countermeasure Squadron. Her hull is made of fibreglass and her fittings, non-magnetic. She is designed for search, location and destruction of moored, acoustic, magnetic and contact mines in the sea. She can also be used for search and rescue and coastal patrol duties.
To top off the celebrations, there was a fireworks display and the Naval Band entertained the crowd. The event assumed yet another significance when the ships were lit up during the night. Since Mangalore is observing Karavali Utsav, the ships added colour to the festival.
Captain Kushal Dang, Naval Officer-in-Charge, Karnataka, supervised the operations.
A large crowd, including hundreds of schoolchildren, visited the ships at the New Mangalore Port where they had dropped anchor.
Navy Day is celebrated on December 4 every year as a tribute to the Indian Navy's exploits during the 1971 war against Pakistan.
RAVIPRASAD KAMILA
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Madurai
Mangalore
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
|
