The breathtaking display of these aircraft’s drew thunderous applause from the gathered crowd. According to preliminary estimates from authorities, the fourth-day of the Aero Show today attracted at least 50,000 people and the numbers could swell on the last day tomorrow.

The crowd was treated to a dazzling display from medium multi-role combat aircraft team of Lockheed Martin’s F-16, Boeings Super Hornet F/A-18, Gripen of Saab and Rafale of French Dassault and Typhoon of Eurofighter.
Among the other interests in this year’s AeroIndia were the aerobatic displays by the Indian Air Force’s nine-aircraft Surya Kirans and the four-aircraft Czech Republic-based Flying Bulls flying the Zlin 50 LX aircraft.

Aero India also has a large civilian aviation component with 54 percent aircraft on display from this sector. Russian Sukhoi, Brazilian Embraer and Ukranian Antonov are some of the passenger plane manufacturers who are here this time around.

It was an additional attraction for some visitors when Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni was sighted at the venue. Dhoni, whose aspirations to fly F-16 fighter aircraft could not be realized as he had not undergone requisite training to fly, however, watched the air display.

A top Pentagon official had stated earlier that  US was open to Indian participation in its JSF project. These comments came during a function where India was pitched to select either the American F/A-18 `Super Hornet’ (Boeing) or F-16 ‘Falcon’ (Lockheed Martin) over their European rivals in the ongoing MMRCA competition. The MMRCA project involves the purchase of 126 fighter planes under which 18 jets will be bought off-the-shelf and another 108 will be manufactured in India under transfer of technology.

The IAF  in the coming years will have a strength of  270 Sukhoi-30MKIs contracted from Russia for around $12 billion, the 126 MMRCA fighter aircraft’s  and 120 indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, apart from the  upgraded MiG-29s and Mirage-2000s. India is also looking forward to develop the FGFA along with Russia which would incorporate advanced stealth technology. A senior Russian official has stated ” Our FGFA will be cheaper than the F-35. Moreover, the intellectual property rights of the FGFA will equally and jointly vest on both India and Russia, with full access to the source code and the like”.

The Indian FGFA will be based on the Russian Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA,but will be built according to IAF’s specifications. IAF, for instance, is also keen on a twin-seater version of the FGFA. In fact , IAF recently finalized the technical requirements for its FGFA, which will have long-range strike and high-endurance air defence capabilities. The FGFA will be a swing-role fighter, with very advanced avionics, stealth to increase survivability, enhanced lethality, 360 degree situational awareness, smart weapons, data-links, and high-end mission computers. While fourth-generation fighters typically revolve around multi-role capabilities, FGFA takes it forward by incorporating stealth technology, composite materials, super cruise, thrust-vectoring and integrated avionics as well.

India would be hoping to induct each of the 250-300 FGFA  from 2020 onwards that will cost around $100 million each. In all, India will spend  $35 billion over the next two decades in its biggest-ever defence project till now.

In an air combat role, the F-16′s maneuverability and combat radius (distance it can fly to enter air combat, stay, fight and return) exceed that of all potential threat fighter aircraft. It can locate targets in all weather conditions and detect low flying aircrafts in radar ground clutter. In an air-to-surface role, the F-16 can fly more than 500 miles (860 kilometers), deliver its weapons with superior accuracy, defend itself against enemy aircraft, and return to its starting point. An all-weather capability allows it to accurately deliver ordnance during non-visual bombing conditions.

The F-16 is a high technology aircraft that requires pilot physical conditioning to perform up to nine G maneuvers. USAF F-16 multi-mission fighters were deployed to the Persian Gulf in 1991 in support of Operation Desert Storm, where more sorties were flown than with any other aircraft. These fighters were used to attack airfields, military production facilities, Scud missiles sites and a variety of other targets.

Originally conceived as a simple air-superiority day fighter, the aircraft was armed for that mission with a single six-barrel Vulcan 20-mm cannon and two Sidewinder missiles, one mounted at each wingtip. Over the years, however, the mission capability of the aircraft has been extended to include ground-attack and all-weather operations With full internal fuel, the aircraft can carry up to 12 000 pounds of external stores including various types of ordnance as well as fuel tanks.

The US Air Force took delivery of its last F-16 Fighting Falcon on March 18, 2005, the last of 2,231 F-16s produced for the Air Force. The first delivery was in 1978.

The U.S. Air Force and Lockheed Martin jointly conducted the radar demonstration flights. The RACR (Raytheon’s Advanced Combat Radar) team highlighted the multirole capabilities RACR could bring to the F-16 Fighting Falcon, which included executing a range of air-to-air and air-to-ground modes.

RACR is the product of company-funded development, leveraging Raytheon’s proven capability in providing active electronically scanned array radar technology for multiple platforms.The RACR team completed development in a record 24 months.

“AESA radar technology has become a ‘must have’ for customers around the world who need to keep their aircraft relevant in the swiftly evolving battlespace,” said Jim Hvizd, vice president, international business development, Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems.

“Successfully flying RACR on an F-16 is another critical step in demonstrating how we’ve optimized our AESA technology for F-16 customers, delivering the advanced radar capabilities they need to maintain an operational edge.

“Raytheon’s AESA technology also lowers operation and support costs by an order of magnitude compared with those of mechanically scanned radars, resulting in significant customer savings over the life of a program,” added Hvizd.

RACR is part of a family of Raytheon AESA radar systems designed to equip multiple aircraft with a low-risk, high-performance, affordable solution. The radar supports a rapid transition to production, leveraging Raytheon’s existing full-rate AESA production lines, providing significant cost and schedule advantages for customers.Raytheon’s flexible, modular approach combines proven systems and innovative enhancements to speed delivery of the right solution for a variety of fighter aircraft.

“Raytheon’s AESA technology brings unparalleled capability and reliability to the F-16 at an acquisition cost comparable to the old mechanically scanned radars,” said Brian MacDonald, RACR program manager, Raytheon’s Tactical Airborne Systems.

The theme of this Air Force Week is Honoring Hometown Heroes. During the week, which runs from Oct. 23 through Oct. 31, there will be free concerts, ceremonies, static displays and demonstrations.

Air Force Weeks were established in 2006 by the chief of staff of the Air Force. Air Force Week objectives were to bring together a mix of Airmen, numerous platforms and recruiting assets to provide the big picture of the Air Force mission and its way of life. The first Air Force Week was held in St. Louis in 2006.

The Thunderbirds are the air demonstration squadron of the U.S. Air Force (USAF), based at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, Nevada. The squadron tours the United States and much of the world, performing aerobatic formation and solo flying in specially-marked USAF jet aircraft.

Officers serve a two-year assignment with the squadron, while enlisted personnel serve three to four. Replacements must be trained for about half of the team each year, providing a constant mix of experience. The squadron performs no more than 88 air demonstrations each year and has never canceled a demonstration due to maintenance difficulty.

In addition to their air demonstration responsibilities, the Thunderbirds are part of the USAF combat force and if required, can be rapidly integrated into an operational fighter unit. Since February 15, 1974 the Thunderbirds have been a component of the 57th Wing at Nellis AFB.