Ratan Tata was on board a second US fighter aircraft in two days, flying as the co-pilot for an hour in Boeing’s F-18 Super Hornet at the Aero India 2007 show in Bangalore on Friday morning. Tata, who had a more strenuous ride in a Lockheed Martin F-16 on Thursday, said his F-18 flight was terrific but involved “not very many maneouvers.” “It was a terrific, terrific ride. I really enjoyed today’s flight,” the 69-year-old Tata group chairman said on returning to the Yelahanka Air Force base after his flight. “I really got the feel of this plane both at high speed and low speed.” Tata’s pilot in the F-18 Super Hornet Todd Nelson said the businessman did a great job when he got his hands on the controls of the aircraft. “We were in touch through the flight and talked about the aircraft. He was appreciative of the canopy and the great view he had from the cockpit. He controlled for about 30 minutes,” Nelson said. The Super Hornet cruised at supersonic speeds, flew above 10,000 feet and covered a distance of 50-60 nautical miles, the pilot said. The F-18 is among six aircraft in contention for India’s 126 multi-role combat aircraft order. The Lockheed Martin F-16 is the other American aircraft in contention, on which Tata flew for 40 minutes on Thursday, a flight he described as exhilarating.
