The Army Microlight Expedition to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Indo-Pak War 1965 was flagged off on Saturday by lt Gen Ravindra Singh Panwar, Sena Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, Commandant Military College of Telecommunication Engineering (MCTE), Mhow and Colonel Commandant of Corps of Signals.
This challenging national event has been organised under the aegis of Army Adventure Wing, Director General of Military Training by the Army Adventure Nodal Centre which functions under MCTE Mhow.
This prestigious adventure node specialises in the adventurous sport of Microlight Flying (Fixed Wing Aircraft & Flexible Wing Aircraft (Powered Hang Gliding) and has undertaken many daring expeditions in the past. They are popularly known as 'The Mountain Eagles'.
The 'Army Microlight Expedition for celebrating Golden Jubilee of Indo-Pak War 1965,' is a daring venture by the Army Team which involves cross country flying by a fleet of three Fixed wing 'Microlight' aircraft over a distance of 3250 kms approximately in 13 days of flying; connecting Mhow, Ahmedabad, Bhuj, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Bhatinda, Hissar, Patiala, Hindon, Agra, Gwalior and Kota,besides many other cities and towns enroute.
During this expedition, eight grand aero displays will also be conducted at Bhuj, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Bhatinda, Hissar, Patiala, Delhi and Kota to commemoratethe Golden Jubilee of the victory in the Indo-Pak War 1965.
The expedition route will take the pilots of these aircraft over deserts of Gujarat and Rajasthan, hilly terrain and the plains of Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Difficult weather and gusty winds will make it an extremely daring and adventurous expedition. This expedition will motivate youth of the country to undertake such adventurous activities.
These aircrafts are being flown by a team of qualified pilots from all arms and services of the Army. The pilots of the aircraft are lt Col MS Chawla (Team leader), Maj Aby TM (Deputy Team leader), CQMH Suja Ram. Other pilots include Col MS Randhawa, Col Ranjeev Singh, lt Col SA Naidu, Maj SM Gupta (The Team Doctor), and CHM Bahadur Singh, along with strong ground support crew led by Naib Subedar MK Jana and Naik Harjinder Singh.