President Murmu Takes Sortie In Rafale Jet
- President Droupadi Murmu flies Rafale from Ambala Air Force Station
- Air Chief Marshal joins flight as Operation Sindoor recalled
President Droupadi Murmu undertook a sortie in a Rafale fighter jet from the Indian Air Force Station in Ambala, Haryana, on Wednesday. The flight marked another milestone for the President, who serves as the supreme commander of the Indian armed forces. The sortie began at 11.27 a.m., with President Murmu waving from inside the aircraft before takeoff.
Air Chief Marshal AP Singh flew in a separate Rafale from the same base. Before boarding, President Murmu donned a G-suit, helmet, and sunglasses, posing for pictures alongside the pilot. She was welcomed with a ceremonial guard of honour upon her arrival at the airbase earlier in the morning, reflecting the Indian Air Force’s appreciation for her leadership and interest in defence operations.
This was not the President’s first flight in a fighter jet. In April 2023, Murmu had flown in a Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft from the Tezpur Air Force Station in Assam. Earlier, former presidents APJ Abdul Kalam and Pratibha Patil had also taken similar sorties in the Sukhoi-30 MKI jets at Lohegaon near Pune in 2006 and 2009, respectively.
The Rafale aircraft, made by French defence company Dassault Aviation, have strengthened India’s aerial capabilities since their induction into the Indian Air Force in September 2020. The first five Rafale jets, which arrived from France on July 27, 2020, were deployed with the 17 Squadron, known as the ‘Golden Arrows’.
The Ambala sortie comes after the Rafale’s noted use in Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. The operation targeted terror infrastructures in Pakistan-controlled regions and concluded on May 10 after four days of intense clashes. The use of the Rafale jets during the operation demonstrated their strategic role in India’s modern aerial combat missions.
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