Much as the myriad pattern of VIBGYOR colours blend to form a rainbow after the rains recede, none emerged as the dark and looming clouds beseeched the sky in and around Royal Air Force (RAF) Waddington, located 3 miles south of Lincoln Town in Eastern England, for over a week.
"Its quite unlike the usual downpour during this part of the year", says RAF Sergeant Ashwin 'Azzy' Rana of the No. 8 Fighter Squadron from the RAF Waddington airbase who is the liaison person for the visiting IAF contingent at UK. With rains abating following the unprecedented rainfall that led to flooding in certain areas in Lincoln, a rainbow pattern is now set to emerge and loom over UK airspace as the ten-day joint Indo-UK air exercise - 'Indra Dhanush-07' (meaning 'rainbow'), gets underway from July 2 to 12, here.
The first of the two IL-76's ferrying 50 IAF air warriors, comprising ground crew and technicians from India yesterday arrived at the RAF airbase around midday (1630 hrs IST) via Doha in Qatar and Tanagra in Greece. "This is the first time-ever that an IL-76 has landed at any RAF airbase", informed Wing Commander PS Arora, the Leader of the first IL-76 that landed at RAF Waddington yesterday.
The six Su-30 MKI's and two IL-78 MKI fuel-tankers, together with the second IL-76 ferrying the remaining complement of the IAF personnel is slated to arrive today. Excitement and anticipation of the much-touted Su-30 MKI's has brought-in most aviation aficionados and 'spotters', camping near the fencing around the airbase with cameras, awaiting first glimpse of the IAF aircraft arriving for the first-time in the history of the airbase.
RAF Waddington is a fully operational unit of No. 2 Group within RAF Air Command and is home to the RAF's airborne Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) aircraft. The aircraft that are operated from the airbase include Boeing E-3D Sentry and Nimrod R1. The former constitutes the UK Component of the NATO Early Warning Force.
But apart from the excitement that the arrival of Indian aircraft have generated, activities on a grand scale are afoot within the airbase in preparation for the Waddington International Air Show, the largest of the RAF's official air shows. Three Su-30 MKI's are expected to draw large crowds at the air show when they are put up for static display on June 30 and July 1, preceding the exercise. A fly-past by one IL-78 MKI Fuel-Tanker flanked by two Su-30 MKI's in patrol formation on either side will also enthrall the onlookers at the airshow.
The venue has acquired a hard-earned reputation amongst visiting pilots and aircrew for its excellent hospitality, and is consequently always very well supported by aircraft from around the western world - many not often seen in the UK.