Sarang misses Surya Kiran, its aerobatic partner

BENGALURU: While the Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) remained grounded on Wednesday, the death of Wing Commander Sahil Gandhi cast a pall of gloom on the Sarangs, the desi helicopter aerobatic team. Gandhi was piloting a Surya Kiran Hawk on Tuesday when he collided with a teammate mid-air and crashed.

The Surya Kirans and Sarangs generally perform at shows together and Wing Commander SA Gadre of the Sarang team admitted that they missed their “partners”.

“We (Sarang and Surya Kiran) do hold interactions and share knowledge,” said Gadre. “Last night we held a meeting after the Surya Kirans crashed and discussed what could have gone wrong. As the team leader, it is important to ensure the team stays motivate and focussed.”

Gadre praised the Surya Kiran team, calling it “highly qualified and credited” and “one of the best performers in the world”. He said he missed Gandhi, while paying rich tribute to the departed wing commander. “He was an accomplished flying instructor and a very good human being,” Gadre said. “He used interact with our team and his inputs were novel and gave us fresh perspective.”

The Sarang team dedicated its stroll-turn manoeuvre (combination of Sarang 3 and 4 in mirror) during the show to Gandhi. Team Sarang also performed a new introduction for the first time — the heart shape — which thrilled visitors.

Gadre said Tuesday’s accident will be analysed in details, also pointing to the Saranag incident in 2007 when Squadron Leader Priyesh Sharma, the co-pilot, and Wing Commander Vikas Jetly were killed.

“We revisit every such incident and we maintain records to ensure error-free and safe aerobatic displays," he said. “Despite it being years since the team’s first fatal accident when one of our helicopters crashed during a rehearsal ahead of the 2007 Aero India, the team revisits the incident and takes note of shortcomings.”