English
New Delhi: The Republic Day this year will see the debut of the newly-inducted stealth attack helicopter Apache and transport chopper Chinook, as they are all set to participate in the January 26 flypast for the very first time.
The IAF in total will display 45 flying objects out of which 16 will be fighter jets, 10 will be transport aircraft and 19 will be helicopters.
“The Republic Day flypast will comprise 41 aircraft of the IAF and four helicopters of the Army’s aviation arm. The aircraft types include 16 fighters, 10 transport aircraft and 19 helicopters. The flypast will be conducted in two phases,” a senior IAF official said.
According to a senior IAF official, the ‘Chinook’ formation will comprise three newly-inducted transport helicopters in ‘vic’ formation, followed by ‘Apache’ formation consisting of the latest attack helicopters of the Indian Air Force.
All the five attack helicopters would be flying in ‘arrowhead’ formation.
Scaled-down models of five systems recently added to IAF’s inventory will also be up for display, namely Rafale aircraft, indigenously developed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), surface-to-air guided weapon Aakash missile and Astra missiles.
The tableau showcasing the theme of ‘Indian Air Force: The Cutting Edge’ will be fabricated on a 50 feet long platform.
For breaking news and live news updates, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Read more on Latest India News on India.com.
