It was national carrier Air-India's 71st birthday and its mascot 'Maharajah' decided to celebrate in style with a gift for 340 'special children' on board an Air-India Boeing 747-400.

For most of the children, some either terminally ill or mentally and physically challenged, the hour-long flight

AI-071, over the metropolis and nearby areas, to commemorate J R D Tata's historic flight from Karachi to Mumbai via Ahmedabad on this day in 1932, was indeed a dream come true.

The children flying for the first time, sang, danced and drew pictures mid-air with popular song and dance show "Boogie-Woogie" anchor Jaaved Jaafri.

The mood for the flight was set much before it was air-borne with Jaafri greeting all the children individually and cracking jokes. He also distributed boarding passes to the passengers.