My memories of flying a VVIP

Wg Cdr Rajiv Sharma (retd)

APJ Abdul Kalam touched millions of lives, leaving each one with a personal heart-warming story to tell.

In my four-year plus stint in the Air Headquarters Communications Squadron, or the VVIP Communication Squadron as it is known in the IAF parlance, Kalam would easily be one VVIP I have had the honour of flying a number of times.

A delightful passenger, he was a VVIP who never carried the baggage of one. He had no demands and complaints.

An extremely simple man with simple tastes, he was no stickler for protocol. The only demand he made was if he had arrived on the airfield, the aircraft should take off and that he should reach his destination.

As a helicopter pilot who is more dependent upon the mercies of weather gods, the demand would prove tricky at times. However, Kalam had also been lucky with weather.

However bad the weather may be before his arrival, we almost always managed to land him at his destination. Once we had to fly him to a helipad in Sunderbans that was reporting zero visibility. The visibility at the Calcutta race course helipad, from where we were to take off, was within minima (conducive).

I explained the situation to his aide that while we will be able to take off, the landing at Sunderbans may not be possible. Kalam asked me about the weather. He told me: “We can take off and if you cannot land at the destination, bring me back.” While we were about to reach the destination, weather cleared and we landed comfortably.

The weather gods were always kind to him and he always managed to get a window, perhaps because of his sheer love for flying.

In one of his books, he talks about his dearest dream - to become a fighter pilot which he failed to realise by a whisker. Among the 25 candidates, he got the 9th position but only eight slots were available in the IAF.

He was obviously meant for bigger things.

(The writer is an ex-pilot of the Air Head Quarter Communications Squadron.)