Chance Tragedy presents City Photographer a rare opportunity

This story was handed over to me by the photographer himself after he returned to Bhopal from bone chilling experience of witnessing the worst ever helicopter crash in the history of Switzerland. Sanjay Jain who runs the Central Colour lab in Bhopal and with whom I was associated with to process my official film and make prints during my stint with Hindustan Times, spoke to me as to how he gave his own death a slip by five minutes.

A chance tragedy got an amateur City photographer a picture of his lifetime – some-thing even professional would trade their right hands for.
The rare accident had two helicopters crashing into each other in mid-air at Nandez Valley in Switzerland. Seven Indians and a Swiss national were killed. It was the first and the worst crash witnesses in the history of Switzerland aviation.
And Sanjay Jain, proprietor of Central Colour Lab, who recorded the incident for posterity, had taken a sortie in one of the choppers just minutes before they collided.
He says the sorties started with one chopper. Another was added mid-way to facilitate the first to go on another assignment. After a few rounds, the second chopper asked for reinforcement as there were many people waiting for their rides.
As the third one approached for landing, it crashed into the second chopper, which had taken off from the spot. The choppers collided 15 to 20 meters above the ground and 150 meters away from Sanjay’s lens.
Sanjay says just the prospect of framing both the approaching choppers prompted him to click the photo. Little did he realize that split seconds later they would crash into each other?
Himself a versatile photographer, Sanjay from his childhood had a knack of appreciating good images.
His own sortie had just taken five minutes. And Sanjay sys “I enjoyed every second of it.” Air Glaciers – a private Swiss company ran the helicopters.
As for his trip to Switzerland, Sanjay says it was organized by the Kodak Company to felicitate the buyers of photographic materials and sellers of cameras and films in the country.
They were first taken to Germany to take part in the world’s biggest photographic event called Photokina – the world’s best photographic technology exhibition.
The groups of Kodak representatives, on their way back, to India were taken to Switzerland, for a two day lay-off after their hectic schedule.
Sanjay adds contrary to what he had heard of efficiency in the West, the rescue operation at the accident site were woefully lacking. The sorties themselves were from a local football ground. There were no precautionary measures in attendance – no ambulance or fire tenders.
Besides the place was very far from Sion- the main city. Sanjay and the others there took the bodies out of the choppers, since the rescue team reached 40 minutes late. To top it all, the Swiss doctors who came after hour displayed what could be called reluctance to examine the bodies.
Meanwhile, three other Indians who were injured are recovering in Switzerland.
As for Sanjay he says he is game for more such rides, any day.

Sarang's Scissors Move

These pictures taken step by step was taken at the Aero India show 2009 at the Yelankha Air Force base on 11th February. This move is one of the boldest maneuvers by the team as this keeps the crowd and more so the pilots on the edge of their seats as they pass each other in a criss - cross fashion.
This particular maneuver by the Peacock team is the most admired by the onlookers and they are left dumbfounded and astonished as how these Indian Air Force pilots achieve the move with pin point precession and harmony.
These images was used in the DNA - Bangalore edition's - Pic Me Up - page on 12th February, 2009.







This maneuver was farmed in continues 9 frames to show the 4 chopper rotar blades almost kissing each other. This move is an routine for the Sarang team and they are working on more dangerous and flamboyant maneuvers which they will present by 2010.

Peacocks Airborne Dance

Sarang which means 'Peacock' is the helicopter formation display team of the Indian Air Force. The team flies the HAL Dhruv. The name Sarang is symbolic as it is the national bird of India.
The team was formed in October 2003 and their first public performance was at the Asian Aerospace Show, Singapore in 2004. The team also performed at the Farnborough and Aero India air shows. The team performed at the 76th Anniversary of Indian Air Force in Hindon Air Base on 8th Oct 2008.

For the Pilots of the Sarang team getting the 5.5 tonne metallic to dance in the air to the tunes of Mozart is as difficult like guiding a bullet train. These pilots make their show look very simple but the amount of planning which goes into each move and maneuvers is clock worked to precision before every show.

This they have learned after the February 2007 accident during a practice session for the Aero India show at Yelahanka in 2007 which claimed the team of its co-pilot Squadron Leader Priye Sharma, and the pilot Wing Commander V Jetely who received serious head injuries.

The Sarang team is like the whirring birds and promise to be as graceful as the peacock in their moves. The sides of the helicopter too are painted with the image of a peacock with the feathers contrasting the gold and red body of the chopper.
The chopper team is known for their awesome Sarang Splits, the crossovers, nosedives, reverse moves and different forms of tandem formation flying.

'Of course, jets have a natural grace which is difficult to emulate,'admits the modest Ravuri Sheetal, who at present is a member of the Sarang team. 'Helicopters are largely unstable machines,' and here lies the challenge.
The choppers are the Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH), produced indigenously by the Bangalore-based Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. Sarang's symphony in the air is a statement of the capabilities of this twin-engine multi-role craft that can easily take to heliborne assault in times of war and switch to air ambulance for casualty evacuations.

Another member of the team K S Kakade compares Sarang's moves to ballroom dancing! 'Each must know his steps or you step on someone's toes!' The power of the main and tail rotors as well as that of the twin-engine is what gives them the power to maneuver the way they do. 'The ALH has hinge-less fiber rotors. If you try these aerobatic tricks with regular helicopters, it won't work,' he explains.
No special modifications have been made to the ALH for the display team, except the addition of a smoke generation system that leaves smoke trails in the sky for the crowds to gasp over.

It is the only chopper in the country with the capability to fly backward. "No helicopter wants to fly backward. There is always a resistance and refusal from the machine," says another team member Rohan Gupta and adds in lighter vein: "It's more difficult reversing a helicopter than a car, because we don't have rear-view mirrors!"
The team is also in charge of monitoring the ALH project, under the IAF's Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE). Most of the Sarang pilots are former Siachen pilots who have been flying in and around the high-altitude and arduous areas of Leh. "Asking us which is more challenging — Siachen or Sarang — is like asking which is the better of our children. Each demands a different kind of perfection."

The Bangalore-based team puts in up to 10 practice sessions every week, flying down to Kolar's Defense Air Field at 7.30 a.m. and keeping at it well into 2.30 p.m. Every session is recorded on video and the performance dissected later with the team.
The strength of the team lies in its insistence on sticking to a strict standard of criticism! Sometimes, even if a member says a problem was minor and let it pass, the others would say it's not OK, and keep giving feedback.

Watching the Sarang perform, during certain maneuvers, one gets a bit bothered that the rotor blades of two choppers will grate into each other! They instead actually maintain a distance of around 13 meters from each other. It's only the audience perspective that gives the formation a tight appearance.
Right now, Sarang dances in the air to the tune of Mozart's 40th Symphony, but may switch to Hindustani music later.