IAF Flagged in White Water Rafting Expedition Called IAF Aqua Scullers

Air Marshal HB Rajaram on 13 November 2013 flagged in IAF (Indian Air Force) Aqua Scullers on the successful completion of their white water rafting expedition on the Ganges from Gangotri (at an altitude of 3049 mtrs) to Ganga Sagar in West Bengal.

It is worth noticing that the River Ganges is known to be one of the most challenging rivers in the world for White Water rafting. The Himalayan portion of the river from Gangotri (at 3049 mtrs) to Haridwar (at 295 mtrs) is considered one of the most treacherous white water stretches in the world, with forceful Grade IV and V rapids. IAF Aqua Scullers completed the expedition by overcoming challenges in the record time of 16 days.

Also, this is the first and the most unique kind of expedition undertaken by the Indian Armed Forces.

Milestones Achieved During the Expedition

• This was the longest Rafting expedition ever in India and covered 3000 km.
• It took shortest duration ever to raft down the entire length of Ganga. The IAF expedition took 16 days with larger distance traversed while the ITBP expedition took 53 days.
• The Indian Armed Forces completed the longest non – stop rafting at a stretch in a single day. On 23 October 2013, the team rafted continuously for 15 hrs from Jalalpur (near Garmukteshwar) to Rajghat (near Anupshahar) in Uttar Pradesh.
• In the meanwhile, the IAF also covered the longest distance by the raft in a single day. On 3 November 2013, more than 300 kms were covered from Ramakantapura iron bridge to Barrackpore in West Bengal.

What is White Water Rafting?

• Rafting is primarily a challenging recreational outdoor activity by making use of a raft in order to navigate the river or a water body.
• Rafting or White Water Rafting is usually done on white water or the different degree of rough water.
• White Water is basically formed in the rapid when the gradient of a river increases so much that it disturbs the laminar flow to create turbulence.
• White Water Rafting became a popular leisure sport since mid 1970s. It is the extreme adventure sport and can also be fatal.