Today appears to be a no-news sort of day so I’ll offer up my commentary on a rather fascinating article in yesterday’s Hindustan Times. You’ve already read it? Oh. Well for those who haven’t, it detailed a move by the Indian Air Force (IAF) to train Garud, its special operations wing (wing, Air Force, snigger) in the Filipino martial of Pekiti-Tirsia Kali.
The art, development of which started in 1897, is combat orientated rather than being geared towards sport. Sweeping circular blade movements representative of planetary orbits are employed together with triangular motions symbolic of the constellations.
It’s taught to special forces in the Philippines, and also, according to the article in the Hindustan Times, ‘Russian Spetsnaz special force, German GSG9 commandos, the US Delta Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Austrian Cobra commandos’. I’m not entirely certain of the accuracy of that, though, particularly with regards to Russian special forces using it. If anyone can provide some proof then please do so.
Okay, so the second clip isn’t a Pekiti-Tirsia Kali demonstration but, you know, hard not to love that guy. . . . and be honest, you DID laugh.
The IAF’s Pekiti-Tirsia Kali trainer, Kanishka Sharma, sums the martial art up as the ability to ‘kill your opponent in three seconds’. The IAF will teach it to its entire Garud commando force at their base in Chandinagar near New Delhi. As I said before, the full article can be read in the Hindustan Times.
And if you can’t get enough of Indian Air Force related material, why not go here and watch a 23minute video about Indian flying legend, Air Commodore Mehar Singh, MVC DSO. Go on, you know you want to. . . .
