The Suryakiran tragedy, a wakeup call?
Thursday - February 21, 2019 6:33 pm ,
Category : WTN SPECIAL
WTN: The tragedy that struck Bengaluru wherein a pilot lost his life as Air Force’s two Suryakiran aircraft collided midair is a grim incident that doesn’t bode well for the image of our defense preparedness. The aircraft were doing a regular practice sortie for the upcoming international air show in the city named Aero India 2019, a famous biennial event of global fame, when a maneuvering glitch in one hit the other plane flying in a close pattern, and led to the debacle.
While two pilots in one plane managed to eject in time and save their lives, the third one in the other plane, could not do so and perished. The Suryakiran team of the IAF is a nine-aircraft aerobatic team that usually participates in different shows with their exceptional formations in the air that is an example of alertness, agility and maneuvering skills.
The Mk2 planes fly at speeds of around 200 kmph on average, rolling, inverting and forming loops in the sky even as the tips of their wings are hardly five metres apart from each other, which indicate the precision with which the planes are flown. A lapse of even a few millimeters by anyone can lead to fatal consequences. The 2-seater jet trainer built by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has had its share of accidents at regular intervals.
One of the planes crashed in 2006 near the Bidar Air Force station during a practice session, while another crash landed during in 2007 at Bhubaneswar airport. In 2009, another of the planes crashed while the latest one happened in the Bengaluru on February 19, casting a shadow of morbidity over the coveted show. While the quality and serviceability of the HAL planes cannot be doubted, nor is there any reason to doubt the ability of the well trained and experienced pilots handling them, yet incidents of such type raise questions on our efficiency and safety.
The Suryakiran accidents are not isolated incidents – they must be seen as a part of the larger picture where we continue to lose our fighter jets very frequently. Our frontline MIGs and Sukhoi planes also see frequent crashes and deaths of fighter pilots, which is a national misfortune.
Our IAF squadrons have dwindled over the years and with delays in new procurements or augmenting to the strength of the IAF with more advanced jets, we are left with chinks in the armor which we need to cover up at the earliest. Such frequent disasters somewhere hit the morale of the forces and hint at certain lapses in training, upkeep and maintenance, which raise the chances of accidents.
The authorities concerned must take these mishaps seriously and earnestly locate the areas of negligence or dereliction or whatever plagues our system so that the heightened risk factors could be scaled down for the better future of our pilots and the country’s Air Force, which has tougher challenges ahead to brace for.-Window To News
While two pilots in one plane managed to eject in time and save their lives, the third one in the other plane, could not do so and perished. The Suryakiran team of the IAF is a nine-aircraft aerobatic team that usually participates in different shows with their exceptional formations in the air that is an example of alertness, agility and maneuvering skills.
The Mk2 planes fly at speeds of around 200 kmph on average, rolling, inverting and forming loops in the sky even as the tips of their wings are hardly five metres apart from each other, which indicate the precision with which the planes are flown. A lapse of even a few millimeters by anyone can lead to fatal consequences. The 2-seater jet trainer built by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has had its share of accidents at regular intervals.
One of the planes crashed in 2006 near the Bidar Air Force station during a practice session, while another crash landed during in 2007 at Bhubaneswar airport. In 2009, another of the planes crashed while the latest one happened in the Bengaluru on February 19, casting a shadow of morbidity over the coveted show. While the quality and serviceability of the HAL planes cannot be doubted, nor is there any reason to doubt the ability of the well trained and experienced pilots handling them, yet incidents of such type raise questions on our efficiency and safety.
The Suryakiran accidents are not isolated incidents – they must be seen as a part of the larger picture where we continue to lose our fighter jets very frequently. Our frontline MIGs and Sukhoi planes also see frequent crashes and deaths of fighter pilots, which is a national misfortune.
Our IAF squadrons have dwindled over the years and with delays in new procurements or augmenting to the strength of the IAF with more advanced jets, we are left with chinks in the armor which we need to cover up at the earliest. Such frequent disasters somewhere hit the morale of the forces and hint at certain lapses in training, upkeep and maintenance, which raise the chances of accidents.
The authorities concerned must take these mishaps seriously and earnestly locate the areas of negligence or dereliction or whatever plagues our system so that the heightened risk factors could be scaled down for the better future of our pilots and the country’s Air Force, which has tougher challenges ahead to brace for.-Window To News
