Uttarakhand disaster: Rescued pilgrims 'saw God' in IAF men

[Abingdonboy]

Chennai: Shaken to the roots by the natural calamity they encountered during their visit to Kedarnath, some of the pilgrims said they saw God in 'green flying overalls'.

“A woman said she couldn’t reach Kedarnath but she saw God in the form of the IAF aerobatic squad Sarang,” recalled squadron leader Prithvi Ponnappa, after a sortie in the hostile conditions of Uttarakhand, where the team from the IAF base at Sulur, near Coimbatore, was busy rescuing stranded pilgrims.

Everything is fine-tuned when they take to the skies for aero displays, but this time, the Sarang team was in a strange terrain doing stuff they were not accustomed to. The team, headed by wing commander R.C. Pathak, was rushed to Uttarakhand from Dundigal Air Force Academy, Hyderabad, to chip in with the rescue operations.

The team banked on the experience gained from search operations during Maharashtra floods and sorties done after late AP chief minister Y.S.R. Reddy died in a helicopter crash.

“Operating in the hills had its fair share of difficulties. But, true grit and courage does not lie in executing what we are trained to do (aerobatic display), but only in rising to the unknown challenges ahead battling all odds for your fellow countrymen,” Wg Cdr Pathak told Deccan Chronicle through text messages from ground zero.

He added that the team has been working from 6 am to 10 pm, staying in makeshift tents and sometimes making do with a single meal.

“We flew to critical areas and used helmet-mounted cameras night-vision goggles and searched for survivors,” said Sqn Ldr Ponnappa, when asked about how IAF pilots located stranded pilgrims. Noting that most of the helipads have been washed off, wing commander Vinod Negi said sometimes landing was not possible and supplies were winched down.

“We even carried out landing on riverbeds, which was quite tricky, but then calculated risks had to be taken to save pilgrims. We also landed at heights of up to 12,000 feet and on ledges in narrow valleys and rocky outcrop of hills,” he added.

“After the relief operations, I feel I am part Uttarakhand resident and part Tamilian now,” said Tirupur resident S. Saravanavel, flying the advanced light helicopters for the last four years. Further, the team, had one flight lieutenant postponing his marriage scheduled for July first week and a squadron leader reporting to duty while his wife is in an advanced stage of pregnancy.

Uttarakhand disaster: Rescued pilgrims 'saw God' in IAF men | Deccan Chronicle