NEWS

Tata pretty cool about flying, says HDFC’s Parekh
February 08, 2007, The Indian Express

“A bit scared about flying in small planes” himself, HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh is among the privileged few who have been treated to a ride across the Indian skies in the plush luxury of Ratan Tata’s Falcon 2000, personally piloted by the Tata Group chairman. Not once, but several times.

As Tata revs up to fly the F-16, a multi-role combat aircraft on Thursday at Aero India 2007 in Bangalore, Parekh told us about his flying experience with the chairman of the world’s 5th largest steel-maker, who recently grabbed headlines after acquiring Anglo-Dutch steel producer Corus for $12 billion.

“He likes to pilot the plane, especially during take-off and landing, but he generally comes out of the cockpit for the duration of the flight,” says Parekh, who recently flew with him to Orissa for an Investment Commission meeting. “During the flight, we did not talk shop. Investment issues dominated our discussions.”

Parekh recalls a conversation with Tata about his worst flying experiences. “He recounted some experiences about landing in bad weather, and occasions when he would have to wait for landing.”

“If I like playing Bridge to unwind, flying is a hobby and passion for Tata,” he adds. It’s no surprise then, that Tata is “eagerly looking forward to flying in the F-16.”

Three weeks ago, Lockheed Martin extended an invitation to the Tata Group chairman to fly the combat aircraft. A licensed pilot, Tata readily agreed. Medical tests, pre-flight briefings and an hour-long cockpit demonstration are now done with. The F-16, which will give daily flight demonstrations in Bangalore, is from the US Air Force’s Pacific Air Force Command and is part of a combat-ready squadron and is being flown by a USAF pilot.

“With a commercial license pilot, I have been flying a couple of aircraft. This is the first time I will be co-piloting a fighter,” Ratan Tata said in Bangalore on Wednesday, a day before he takes the backseat in the F-16 at 1 pm. The sortie, which will last between 25-40 minutes, will make Tata “among the oldest people to fly the F-16,” according to Catherine Blades, Lockheed Martin, Director (Marketing Communications).

“The Tata family has been engaged in aviation from the very beginning. Tata was a pilot and expressed interest in flying this machine. We will be able to accommodate him. He is a major supporter of improvement in Indo-US relations. It’s important to be putting him in the seat of F-16 in that context,” Lockheed Martin’s senior VP-business development Robert H Trice said.

Significantly, the F-16 is among the aircraft being pitched for the the Indian Air Force’s plan to buy 126 multi-role fighters for an estimated $9 billion—one of the biggest global military jet purchases in recent times. In addition to the US government, 24 militaries around the world fly the F-16.

It’s will be a nostalgic moment for Indian aviation—from JRD Tata’s first flight in a Puss Moth from Karachi to Bombay in 1932 to Ratan Tata’s adventure in a US military aircraft on Thursday.