President Pratibha Patil landed in the city on Tuesday, ahead of her flight on Wednesday when she will be the first woman to fly in an Indian fighter aircraft. She will undertake a sortie on the Sukhoi-30 MKI fom the Lohegaon air base. Wing Commander S Sajan will be flying the Su-30.

A thick security blanket was palpable at the Lohegaon air base with both the civil administration and the airforce security deploying their full strength. Tuesday is an “open day” at the Lohegaon airbase, where civilians, including school and college students, guests of those working at the air base, are allowed to visit the station with prior permission. The open day was cancelled on Tuesday in view of the presidential visit. Officials said the airport base was being spruced up ahead of the presidential visit.

“President Patil will be the first woman president anywhere in the world to fly the Su-30 MKI. It will be a basic flight, not the kind of combat manoeuvres that fighters generally do. It will more or less be similar to President Kalam’s Sukhoi flight in 2006 — except it will not be going supersonic,” said IAF spokesperson T K Singha. The fight sesison will be around half an hour. “Preparations have been made and all security arrangements are in place,” he said. The IAF spokesperson said the President had been preparing for the flight for two months.

While she has already been certified as “medically fit” by the IAF to undertake the sortie, Patil will undergo a few basic tests again on Wednesday before the flight. The Sukhoi-30MKI belongs to the Rhino squadron that was formed on November 1, 1969, making it 40-year-old this month. Governor S C Jamir will be present at the air force base to witness the flight, along with Air Chief Marshal P V Naik and other top civil and defence officials.

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