President Droupadi Murmu to take Rafale sortie from Ambala airbase

President Droupadi Murmu, Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces, will visit the Ambala Air Force Station on Wednesday to undertake a sortie in the Rafale fighter jet.

This will be President Murmu’s second sortie in a combat aircraft. On April 8, 2023, she had taken a historic flight in a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter at the Tezpur Air Force Station in Assam, becoming the third President and the second woman President to undertake such a sortie.

The upcoming visit to Ambala assumes significance in light of the Indian Air Force’s deployment of Rafale jets during Operation Sindoor, the national response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.

During her earlier flight in the Sukhoi-30 MKI, President Murmu flew for about 30 minutes, covering the Brahmaputra and Tezpur valleys with a stunning view of the Himalayas before returning to the base. The sortie was piloted by Group Captain Naveen Kumar, Commanding Officer of the 106 Squadron.

According to the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the aircraft flew at an altitude of around two kilometres above sea level and achieved a speed of approximately 800 kilometres per hour.

In the Tezpur Air Force Station visitors’ book, the President had written that it was an exhilarating experience to fly in the mighty Sukhoi-30 MKI and expressed pride in India’s expanding defence capabilities across land, air and sea. She also congratulated the Indian Air Force and the entire Tezpur team for organising the sortie.

The President had then also taken a briefing on the operational capabilities of the aircraft and the Indian Air Force (IAF) and expressed satisfaction on the operational preparedness of the IAF.

Rashtrapati Bhavan sources said President's sorties in fighter jets are a part of her efforts to engage with the armed forces, as their Supreme Commander.

In March 2023, the President had visited INS Vikrant, India's first indigenous aircraft carrier commissioned in 2022, and interacted with officers and sailors on board of the indigenously built aircraft.