In the air: the parade of 9 July seen from an army helicopter

"Leave the car on Figueroa Alcorta and remember to place yourself in the Paseo de la Infanta area, not near the presidential platform, so you can see me better," said one of the commanders. . Army aviation around noon, while we were stationed at Quilmes airfield, waiting for the signal to take off towards Libertador Avenue
participate in the parade on July 9th.

THE NATION He traveled in one of the combat helicopters that "paraded" over the heads of thousands of people who traveled to the Buenos Aires district of Palermo to attend the event , which involved more than four thousand soldiers.

"For us, it's an opportunity for our loved ones to see us do what we love," said one of the co-drivers, who had been frustrated at not being able to participate in the previous parade, in which his colleagues had returned.

Although the journey through the thousands of meters of the parade route took a few minutes for the helicopters, the day of the combat team members began at 8:30 am in Campo de Mayo, where the force has its headquarters.

There, they took part in a brief act to honor the acts of independence, then took a breakfast before leaving for Quilmes airfield. After half an hour of flight over the northern conurbano area, the port area of ​​the city and a small part of the southern coastal area of ​​the conurbano, the 12 helicopters descended on the dirt track of Quilmes.

Happy and excited, the uniform took advantage of the break for a little over an hour, then examined the helicopters and found each his lunch. It was delivered in a white bag and included a Milanese sandwich, another with ham and apple and a soda.

Then it was the turn of the photo of rigor: they put next to the helicopters of war, which also serve for rescues. "At 11:55, everyone is seated on the plane until we have to leave," gave the order given by Colonel Sergio Esteban Di Clemente.

The order was accepted by everyone and by noon each person was inside his helicopter waiting to receive the take-off signal that was to arrive 15 minutes later.

The caravan was ordered by the
The giant of the group, the "Super Puma", of French origin, can travel a speed of 250 km / h and an autonomy of more than three hours.

Helicopters arrived in the Puerto Madero area in just five minutes. From there, Libertador Avenue could be seen. Then, a straight line was drawn by flying over the emblematic avenue where the military parade was taking place.

At 12:45, the presidential stand and the area hosting the largest number of people flew. He was then followed in a straight line to the Center for High Performance Sports (Cenard), from where he returned to the coastal area and returned to Campo de Mayo.