IAF 'Top Guns' enthrall at Republic Day parade flypast

New Delhi [India], Jan 26 (ANI): The "Top Guns" of the Indian Air Force (IAF) left the crowd mesmerised during the Republic Day parade flypast on Sunday with some astounding ariel aerobatics conducted with style.
Touted as the "grand finale" of the Republic Day function, the main fly-past commenced with the 'Trishul' formation, comprising of three ALH helicopters in 'Vic' formation.
This was for the first time that a "Tri-service Formation" was part of a Republic Day parade.
The formation flying at a speed of 180 kmph was led by Group Captain Abhishek Shukla, Commanding Officer 116 Helicopter Unit. The Captain of the helicopter flown by Army was Lieutenant Colonel Atul Srivastava and that of Navy was Commander Ajay Yadav.
The helicopter has been indigenously designed and produced in India.
The next formation comprised of three Chinook helicopter flying in 'Vic' formation at a speed of 180 kmph. The Chinooks, which have been procured from US and recently inducted into IAF boast of airlifting diverse loads into remote locations.
It is a heavy lift, twin rotor, helicopter which has enhanced IAF's lift capability across a range of military and HADR missions. The formation was led by Group Captain Siddharth Rawat, Commanding Officer 126 Helicopter Unit. The captains of the other two helicopters were Wing Commander Rahul Sharma and Wing Commander Prashant Uniyal.
Several in the crowd were seen standing and attempting to click photos of the choppers flying in formation.
The next formation flying in comprised of five Apache attack Apache helicopters which were inducted into IAF last year.
The helicopter is capable of firing Air to Air and Air to Ground missiles, rockets and front gun aided through fire control radar which can unleash havoc on the adversary.
The formation was led by Group Captain Mannarath Shylu VM, Commanding Officer 125 Helicopter Squadron. The captains of the other four helicopters were Group Caption Ashok Kumar VM, Wing Commander Kshitij Awasthi, Wing Commander Indumeet Singh and Wing Commander Praveen Sarathi.
Following them were three Dornier aircraft flying in 'Vic' formation. The formation was led by Wing Commander SK Chauhan. The captains of the other two aircraft were Squadron Leader Vikas Kumar and Squadron Leader Abhishek Vashisht.
Behind the 'Dornier' formation, was the Hercules formation, comprising three C-130J Super Hercules aircraft in 'Vic' formation.
The aircraft was inducted into the Indian Air Force in 2011. The Super Hercules is a very versatile tactical transport aircraft optimized for special operations and has gained fame for its high altitude operations from Leh and Daulat Beg Oldi.
The formation was led by Group Captain V P Singh while the other two aircraft were captained by Wing Commander Shishir Sukant and Wing Commander HPS Bhati.
This was followed by 'Netra' -- the "Eye in the Sky" which was flanked on either side by Su-30 MKI aircraft.
"Netra' is an Airborne Early Warning and Control System aircraft with state-of-the-art Early Warning Radar and a host of advanced Electronic Warfare equipment, all indigenously designed and developed by the DRDO, led by the Centre for Airborne Systems, Bengaluru.
The AEW&C aircraft was flown by Group Captain Pradeep Batra while the Su-30s were flown by Wing Commander GBS Chauhan and Wing Commander Utkarsh Singh.
Behind the 'Netra' formation was the 'Globe' formation, comprising three C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft flying in displaced trail Vic formation at a speed of 500 kmph.
The C-17 is a heavy lift, long range, strategic aircraft inducted into the Indian Air Force in 2014.
The C-17 aircraft were captained by Group Captain P Sisodia, Group Captain Rakesh Sharma and Wing Commander Karan Kapoor.
By now, the crowd was on its toes and their expectations were not belied.
Five Jaguar Deep penetration strike aircraft, in 'Arrowhead' formation were the next to fly past at a height of 300 m and a speed of 780 kmph. The formation was led by Group Captain Parijat Saurabh. The other members of the formation were Wing Commander Arjariya, Wing Commander Gautam, Squadron Leader Gill, and Flight Lieutenant Chandel.
Following the Jaguars were five MiG-29 Upgrade Air Superiority Fighters in 'Arrowhead' formation. The formation was led by Group Captain Alok Sharma. The other members of the formation were Wing Commander Parijat Jha, Wing Commander AB Vasane, Wing Commander Amol Kelkar and Squadron Leader Arun Balasubramanium.
Then came the Su-30 MKIs of the Indian Air Force. The three aircraft split outwards and upwards, making a Trishul in the sky. The formation was being led by Group Captain Nishit Ohri while the captains of the other two aircraft were Wing Commander Nilesh Dixit and Wing Commander Karan Dogra. This was received by wild cheers and resounding claps.
This was followed by a lone Su-30 MKI, flying at a speed of 900 km/hr splits the sky with a 'Vertical Charlie'. The aircraft was being piloted by Wing Commander Yathartha Johri along with Flight Lieutenant S Mishra. (ANI)