The seemingly dangerous manoeuvres by these aircraft of the Cold War era have left the audience in awe. The planes come close to one another and also form hearts and bows through smoke machines in the clear canvass of the skies.
After performing at the last edition of Aero India, the popular Yakovlevs are back at the Air Force Station Yelahanka to enthral the crowd.
Flying in the formation of three Yaks (a twin-seater YAK 52 at the centre flanked by two single-seater YAK 50), the Yakovlevs Aerobatic Display Team has been keeping the crowds on their toes with their performance.
‘Amazing view’
“We like performing in Bengaluru. It is an absolutely amazing view (of the base) from the top. Lot of people in several pockets stop to see us perform,” said the team founder-owner Jez Hopkinson, a former Royal Air Force pilot. If everything had gone off well, Bengaluru’s audience would have had the opportunity to watch them ‘sky type’ letters using a sophisticated smoke system. The team, however, intends to do it in China later.
The team of eight, including five pilots from Henstridge, the U.K., is among the two foreign display teams performing here. While the Yakovlevs team normally flies with six aircraft in other shows, it has plans to scale it up to nine aircraft from 2018.
Why does the British team fly the Russian-made Yaks? “They are fantastic and very good. They give everything that you want in an aircraft and they are flexible,” said Mr. Hopkinson, who bought his first Yak in 1994, two years before founding the Yakovlevs. “If not for the Yak, I wouldn’t have this team at all!”
The Yakovlevs have to their credit more than 2,000 shows since 1998. On an average, each of the Yakovlevs’ pilots has about 10,000 hours of flying under his belt. The average age of the team has gone up from 35 in 1996 to about 55 now. “I am getting old and I need to slow down now,” Mr. Hopkinson said.
The Yakovlevs is now looking for good sponsors to take the team forward. “It is hard to run the team without sponsors. We can get a sponsor, but they should be good,” he added.
Manoeuvres moderated
The heat in Bengaluru has forced the Yakovlevs to moderate their manoeuvres. Inadequate wind and higher temperature make it quite difficult for the display team. “Formation changes have been incorporated [to suit the weather here] and the team has dropped some of the manoeuvres,” team leader Jez Hopkinson said. The team has a range of display lasting between 5 and 18 minutes.
