JOIN USDaring stunts in the skies
There were heart-stopping moments. These were interspersed with heart-dropping moments as well. The eighth edition of Bangalore’s flagship event, Aero India 2011, opened to mixed reactions. The first-timers sat with their hearts in their mouths. But those who had seen Aero India before and enjoyed all that, said that the manoeuvres were not enough.
But everyone sat with their eyes glued to the skies as Surya Kirans, Tejas and Grippens soared in the skies and matched the sweltering sun rays with their aerobatics.
The inaugural show had the VVIPs from the armed forces, those holding high posts in the aviation industry and the aviation enthusiasts in full attendance. Ratan Tata was spotted among the guests and so was minister Shobha Karandlaje.
Metrolife interacted with the people at the show and asked them what impressed them the most. Many spoke about the variety of aircraft while others picked out the manoeuvres that they particularly liked and wished they could see them all over again.
Sunaina Chaturvedi from Delhi who has just moved to Bangalore said that she was thoroughly impressed with the show.
“The various aircraft did well in displaying their capabilities and what we saw here is the latest in aviation technology. And more than anything, I think this is a perfect platform for India to display its development in the aviation sector,” observes Sunaina.
Trupti Raghu with the United Nations Organisation in Sudan is down for a holiday and she confesses that she couldn’t miss the Aero Show for anything.
“Honestly, I think the last Aero Show was better than this year. Somehow, the many signature manoeuvres that we got to see at the previous show are missing this year. Looks like they’ve been a little restricted this year,” she says. Pallavi Gurudath too thought it was a little subdued this year, “There’s a board screaming food items not allowed but we saw people bringing in stuff to eat. I think it should be more regulated. We missed the many manoeuvres we got to see last time,” complains Pallavi.
Kulu, a teacher with the Sarla Birla Academy, said that this was the first time she was coming for a live show.
“I was amazed by the pilot’s sense of coordination and concentration. The Surya Kirans were the best from what I saw,” says Kulu.
Sumit Guha, the chief of sales and marketing with Methodex Systems, said that he’d seen many shows in Hyderabad but Bangalore was the best.
“I think this is by far the best air show that I’ve seen. The manoeuvres looked dangerous but it takes a lot to do those stunts in the sky,” says Sumit.
The many press releases being passed around were proof that several business deals had been struck on the opening day and the exhibition stalls too seemed to have visitors trooping in through the day.