Sachin may fly in Sukhoi from Lohegaon air base

Pune: As a run-getter, Sachin Tendulkar has soared above the rest in the world of cricket. Now, the air force base here plans to introduce him to dizzying heights up and above the real world with a special sortie in a Sukhoi aircraft.
"He is an exceptional cricketer and we would like to fly him in an exceptional airplane like the Sukhoi 30," said Air Marshal Anjan Kumar Gogai, air officer commanding-in-chief, HQ South Western Air Command, while interacting with the media on Tuesday.
Gogai said a proposal in this regard has been moved to the ministry of defence. "The sortie can be carried out subject to the ministry's approval and Sachin's availability," he said.
Such sorties are certainly only for the privileged, with president Pratibha Patil and her predecessor A P J Abdul Kalam having been flown in Sukhois in the past. Incidentally, Patil was the oldest woman at 74 years to be airborne in a combat jet for a 30-minute sortie at a speed close to the supersonic level when she flew in a Sukhoi last year.
05/01/11 Prasad Kulkarni/Times of India

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jan 2011