 
 
 
While Mudit is getting a taste of the Academy discipline…
Priya, Amogh and Kartik get ready for the morning flying exercises.
A big motivation for them to wake up early every morning is to put on the flying over-alls.
Standing here in this flying overall with these badges on, gives me pride.
I feel like a person who has achieved his dream.
But, still there is some hardwork that is left.
The overall epitomizes the league of men and women who champion the skies and defend the nation.
We are expected to be perfect in what we do and I just love that part of it.
It has become more of a skin to me.
And this gives me feeling of pride when I am wearing these and getting geared up for my sorties
and you are doing something that millions and millions of people are just dreaming of.
It is a very very demanding
and a very very rigorous training program
and is not easy to become a pilot and earn their wings.
It is a privilege and a responsibility.
Something these cadets must realize early on.
Suited up in her flying overalls, Priya is on her way to the next stage of ground exercise before an actual flight
The simulator.
Priya can rehearse her sorties,
make mistakes and learn from them.
Although, more the mistakes, lower are the chances of being able to fly.
In the starting we have three simulators before you actually start flying.
 
Three simulator sessions.
That is all Priya has in order to be eligible to fly
Will she manage to make it through without mistakes?
 
 
 
 
They will go the aircraft and fly their first sortie only after they have been cleared by a test on ground.
That’s when the actual flying start.
There is no leniency in simulation.
Priya needs to carry out the simulator sortie exactly like an actual flight.
Landing for any aircraft is a very crucial as being the final and crucial aspect of flying.
 
 
 
Priya tends to bank left on her landings. It’s a cause for concern.
In my initial phases, I was weak in landing area.
The landing was off centre.
This can be very risky when landing on a real runway.
1 session down.
Only two more to go to perfect the landing.
Or else flying will remain just a dream for her.
 
For Priya and Amogh, qualifying for a solo sortie means ...
mastery and control over both the flying and the ground subjects.
Priya in the Academy and Amogh at Hakimpet Air Force Station are in their flying classes.
For all civil scheduled indian/international flight...
...duty officer at the FIC i.e. Flight Information Centre will pass details to AFMLU.
AFMLU  Air Force Movement Liaison Unit.
Flying is technical and there is a lot of theory involved.
There are subjects like Aerodynamics.
So, when you go up in the air...
you know how aircraft performs at various speeds
and at weather conditions, there is meteorology. Then there is navigation.
Then there is aviation medicine,
which is the equally important because we need to know the effect that the gravitational pull of the earth we are going to have in the body.
For beginners like Priya and Amogh,
a strong theory becomes a stronger launch pad to take off for the skies.
You have to ensure that the ATC is available before you depart from a particular place.
We have test once in a month or as planned.
We have to focus on flying, ground subjects and physical training, simultaneously.
 
If either Priya or Amogh fail their theory tests,
they will have to re-learn and reappear for the tests till they clear it.
Repeating classes and tests, takes away a lot of what they have a in a very limited supply…time.
At the Air Force Academy, cadets follow a non-stop schedule.
Having successfully completed the ground exercises and the simulator sessions,
Amogh, in Hakimpet is all set to fly his first dual sortie.
This is the FIRST time he’ll be flying a jet aircraft with an instructor.
 
He’ll be tested on everything he learnt in the ground exercises…
As well as tasks specifically assigned for this sortie like,
His fluency in the checks and procedures while handling the aircraft
His alignment skills on the yellow line from start up to the runway
And most importantly, time.
Because the delay in the procedure of one sortie ...
...has a direct impact on the 50 other sorties lined up.
His performance will be reviewed,
and the result will decide if he gets to fly the second sortie or has to go back to chair flying.
 
Whenever we go for a sortie, it is very important for us to take a briefing and a debrief.
Detailed sortie briefing is carried out for each trainee by his individual instructor.
The briefing is done atleast in one day advance.
So that whatever has been briefed to the trainee,
it takes atleast one day to prepare for that sortie.
