By Brij Khandelwal

Agra, Oct 8 (IANS): Residents in Malpura area, close to the Agra Air Force station's parachute practice dropping zone, heaved a sigh of relief after the ear-splitting sound they experienced surfaced as a gypsy vehicle dropped from the sky into the village community pond.

The Indian Air Force is celebrating its 88th Air Force Day on Thursday. October 8 is celebrated as Air Force Day because on this day, the Air Force in India was officially raised in 1932 as the supporting force of the Royal Air Force of England.

Malpura police officials later said that the vehicle attached to a parachute was dropped from an aircraft at the dropping zone during a practice session on Wednesday, but a sudden strong gust of wind changed its course, and the gypsy with equipment, landed right in the middle of the Khalua pond, luckily not on the village.

The panic-stricken villagers said initially they thought it was an explosion, but later things became clear.

Till around seven in the evening, divers and soldiers with boats, cranes, and machines continued the search for the sunken vehicle but had to call off the operation after it became dark.

The search began again early on Thursday. By around 12 noon the soldiers managed to pull out the vehicle from the depths of the pond to the relief of hundreds of villagers who had congregated at the site.

As the vehicle was taken out of the water, the crowd cheered.

The Malpura air force dropping zone is just two kilometres away from the pond.