Ratan Tata Birthday: When 69-year-old industrialist took sortie in Boeing F-18 Super Hornet fighter Jet

Ratan Tata Birthday: On the veteran industrialist's 85th birth anniversary, we remember the time he flew the Boeing F-18 Super Hornet fighter jet in India.

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Ratan Tata, apart from being the former chairman of a company that owns stakes in multiple airlines, is also an aviation enthusiast. The year was 2007 when the veteran Indian industrialist Ratan Tata "gave wings" to his enthusiasm for aviation. On the occasion of the former Tata Sons chairman's birthday, we remember the 2007 Aero India show in Bangalore when the 69-year-old (2007) industrialist got to fly two US fighter jets in two days. At the time, the now octogenarian got to ride the Lockheed Martin F-16 and, later on, the Boeing F-18 Super Hornet fighter jet.

In 2019, Ratan Tata shared a picture of him at the event coming out of an F-18 Super Hornet fighter jet and called the moment "one of my favorite moments from this decade." In his Instagram post, he wrote, "It is not just the end of a year, but the end of a decade too. I look forward with excitement to the new decade ahead, which is a great time to be relevant, to stand for causes you believe in, to create something from scratch, make special connections, to laugh, and write a little bit of history. Here’s one of my favorite moments from this decade, flying the F18 Super Hornet at the Bangalore Aero Show."

Ratan Tata's pilot at the time in the F-18 was Todd Nelson, who, at the time, appreciated the businessman's skill of flying. He said that the industrialist did a great job once he got his hands on the controls of the fighter jet. The Indian Express quotes Nelson saying, "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."

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The Boeing F-18 Super Hornet Fighter jet that Ratan Tata had a flight in is currently one of the best-selling fighter jets in the world. The Super Hornet developed by Boeing now gets massive upgrades like a 20 percent larger airframe, 41 percent more range, and 35 percent more thrust. Furthermore, Boeing has been pitching the F-18 to the Indian Air Force for quite a long time now.