Excess social media use cause for IAF pilots fatigue : Air Chief Marshal warns

Mangalore Today News Network

November 16, 2019: The hi tech advancing nature of IAF  flight operations, in tandem with a level of social media addiction among young pilots, is among the challenges the Indian aviation medicine is struggling to address because it has become a neglected field, said the chief of the Indian Air Force.

 

Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria said at the 58th edition of the Indian Society of Aerospace Medicine’s annual conference that the IAF has not done enough for the aviation medicine in terms of service. Urgent need is seen to examine why youngsters today are not taking up aviation medicine.  We may sugarcoat the reasons, but it is clear that this is because it offers little in the way of career growth and a lack of super-specialisation and so on.

The Air Chief Marshal credited the ongoing efforts of people working in the realm of Indian aerospace medicine with maintaining the combat effectiveness of the Air Force, but added he was compelled to restart a pilot-physician programme which was mentioned in last year’s edition of the conference by Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, now retired.  The programme, which was discontinued nearly four decades ago will instal a serving pilot who is also a specialised physician within every squadron to overview the health of pilots within the unit.

Social media trap   : Air Chief  Bhadauria said increased proliferation of technological devices had made it easier for young pilots to become addicted to social media, so much so that many of them are losing sleep.

“We have to find ways of discouraging young pilots to stay away from this late at night. We have to find ways to recognise who hasn’t had much sleep. The aircraft available today are such, the kind of mission that are being carried out, are tough on the human capability.
In an earlier age, combat used to last three minutes, now pilots are expected to carry out repeated sorties. These are challenges that are new and they are something that needs to be solved,” Bhadauria said.

Air chief test-flies HAL trainer  :  After leaving the conference around noon on Thursday, Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria went to the old airport to test-fly Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL) newly-developed HTT-40 basic trainer.

Bhadauria, who was lofted airborne at 1.20 pm, remained airborne for an hour as the aircraft’s test pilot, Group Captain K K Venugopal out the aircraft through its paces, including stalling the aircraft and put into a spin.

In the face of apparent indecision by the Air Force over ordering the type, Bhadauria told this newspaper: “Of course, we want it.”

He later informed HAL officials that he was satisfied with the performance of the aircraft.