First woman defence minister Sitharaman takes off in a Sukhoi-30 fighter jet

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman flew in Sukhoi 30 MKI fighter aircraft on Wednesday. She became the first woman defence minister to soar high in a sortie in the formidable fighter, which has nuclear strike capability and capability to penetrate deep in enemy territory, at the Air Force Station in Jodhpur.

Before the scheduled take off, Sitharaman met air warriors of the Indian Air Force at Air Force Station Jodhpur.

It can be recalled that cricketers and honourary armed forces officer Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni have flown in the multi-role fighter.

Sitharaman earlier visited INS Vikramaditya last week for witnessing the naval operations and maritime prowess of the Indian Navy.

About Sukhoi-30 MKI:

The Sukhoi-30 MKI is a twinjet multirole air superiority fighter developed by Russia's Sukhoi and built under licence by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF). A variant of the Sukhoi Su-30, it is a heavy, all-weather, long-range fighter.

The Sukhoi is also one of the most versatile fighter jets of the Indian Air Force (IAF). The Sukhoi-30 MKI has been acquired from Russia by India.

In November 2017, India had successfully flight-tested the air variant of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the fighter jet.

OneIndia News (with inputs)