The Indian Air Force (IAF) was established on 8 October 1932 by an announcement in the Gazette notification when six Indians were commissioned after completing their training at Royal Air Force College, Cranwell in UK. The First Flight of IAF was formed at Karachi on 1 April 1933. The equipment was four Wapiti aircraft and the strength of the unit was five officers and 22 airmen, called “Hawai Sipahis”. Communication was with Morse code and messages were picked up by a hook. Two more flights were added to form No. 1 Squadron (Sqn) by 1938. The squadron took part in army operations against hostile tribes in North Waziristan. Flying Officer (later AIR Marshal) A M Engineer was “Mentioned-in-Despatch” and the fuel tank of Flying Officer Mehar Singh’s plane was hit by a bullet. He had to crash land at a rocky place and make his way to the unit while the tribesmen were looking for him.
The force was equipped with Lysander and Hurricane aircrafts and moved to Burma in February 1942 to participate in World War II. During World War II, the strength of the force grew to 28,500 including 1,600 officers.
The Service established highest traditions of courage and efficiency in carrying out the comparatively unglamorous task of tactical reconnaissance and support to the army, in ageing aircrafts. The No. 1 Squadron was located at an airfield near Rangoon and flew missions in support of Chinese Army as well. The Chinese were so impressed by the IAF actions that they presented a “Gold Wing” to the squadron – a rare honour indeed. Relentless operations by the IAF turned the retreat of the Japanese into rout. Squadron Leader (later Martial of the Air Force) Arjan Singh, Officer Commanding No. 1 Squadron, noticed a few soldiers in strange uniform on a hill overlooking the air field while taking a round at Imphal, whom he identified as Japanese soldiers. He called out the entire squadron to attack the Japanese. Lord Mountbatten flew into Imphal to personally pin the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) on Arjan Singh. In recognition of the outstanding work, the pre-fix “Royal” was awarded in March 1945 to the IAF. The No. 4 Squadron was part of the Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan.
The force was divided into RIAF and PAF at the time of Independence in 1947. The British officer presiding over the Partition Committee of assets was aghast when the Indian team told him that they did not need any British non-commissioned officers (NCOs) after Independence! He predicted collapse of the RIAF in three months. On the contrary, the RIAF flew from glory to glory, achieving a few firsts in aviation history.
A large number of raiders and Pakistani soldiers had infiltrated into Kashmir in 1947. The No. 12 Squadron airlifted 1 Sikh battalion to Srinagar on 27 October and landed on a dusty airfield without any reconnaissance. Dakotas from civil airlines joined in the air lift, a remarkable achievement at short notice. Fighter aircraft attacked enemy positions in Patan next day. The Air Chief, who was from UK, had given instructions not to use the Srinagar airfield for fighter aircraft due to its limited length of runway. He had not counted on the ingenuity of RIAF pilots. One of them kept on hovering round the Srinagar airfield till he was short of fuel to fly back and landed at Srinagar, proving the suitability of the runway.
Spitfire fighters were moved to Srinagar and participated in the decisive battle of Shalatang. The raiders were pushed back to Uri. The Spitfires delivered food to Skardu garrison when the dropping zone was restricted and not suitable for drops by Dakotas. In a daring raid, they destroyed the bridges at Domel and Kishenganga. A large number of non-Muslims had collected at Poonch. The raiders were occupying the surrounding hills and road had been cut off. Lt Col (later Brigadier) Pritam Singh had improved the parade ground to serve as an air strip. The troops and refugees were maintained by supplies carried by IAF. The army wanted field guns to hit the enemy at a longer range. It was not possible to do so in daylight due to observed fire from the raiders. This was done at night using candles to mark the strip and one Dakota kept bombing the enemy positions. The challenge to rush troops to Leh at an altitude of 10,000 feet was taken up by Air Commodore Mehar Singh (popularly called Mehar Baba). Major General Thimayya flew along with him. Mehar Baba was awarded Maha Vir Chakra (MVC). The war ended on 31 December 1948. The RIAF had played a notable part earning four MVCs and 23Vr Cs.
The strength of the force soon rose to 20 squadrons. About 100 fighter aircrafts were procured from UK. The prefix Royal was dropped in 1950 when India became a republic. Twelve MIG 21 fighter aircrafts were procured from USSR in 1962 and an agreement was signed to manufacture them in India. An unusual commitment of the IAF was to support United Nations operations on the Congo (now Zaire) in 1961- 62 which it did by providing the U.N. ground forces with its only long-range air support.
War against China erupted on the Northern border in October 1962. It was decided not to use the IAF in offensive role and support was limited to airlift operations. A notable feat was the airlift of AMX tanks to the 15,000 feet high Chushul airfield in Ladakh. The task was carried out by removing the heavy plates from the engine compartment and bogey wheel. The floor was strengthened by wooden planks to suit the shape of the aircraft so that they did not move. Squadron Leader (later AVM) Chandan Singh declined to carry out any trials with the remark, “Chandan does not carry out any trials.” He took off and other pilots followed at 15 minutes interval. France promoted this feat as a credit to the AMX tanks.
Large number of militants infiltrated into Jammu & Kashmir in August 1965. The IAF joined the fight against them with attack helicopters and the Pakistan attack was stalled. Full scale war erupted on 6th September. The Gnats of IAF established their reputation by defeating Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) Sabres and the two Keelor brothers from the Gnat squadron became household names in the country. Pakistan Army’s crackdown on the people of East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, pushed a large number of refugees into India in 1971. Cross border firing and violation of air space was alleged by both the States. Four Sabre fighters of PAF strafed Indian positions on 22nd November. Three of them were shot down by Indian Gnats. Qureshi, one of the two Pakistani pilots, who bailed out rose to the rank of PAF Chief. PAF bombed a few IAF bases in a pre-emptive strike on 3rd December and a general war broke out. PAF was soon driven off the air in the Eastern Sector and the Army did not face any interference from the PAF there. Airborne operation, helicopter borne attacks and a heli-bridge supported the Indian Army’s blitzkrieg to Dacca.
The Indian Army pre-empted Pakistan by occupying Siachen, the world’s highest battle ground, in 1984. Extreme climate, lack of oxygen and close proximity to the hills were the difficulties faced by the pilots and technical staff. The pilots have to be of above average skills and have a strong sense of commitment. Same goes for the technical staff too. Skin peels off on touching a metal part. Successful change of engine in a helicopter at an altitude of 20,000 feet is certainly a world record. They are able to do so due to love for the motherland and pride in the Service. Hardships and risks to life do not deter them. In Sri Lanka, 70,000 sorties were carried out without any loss of aircraft or mission. Tanks are a great asset in a battle and AMX tanks were airlifted to Chushul in 1962. For operations in Sri Lanka, eight 43-ton weighing T-72 tanks were airlifted to Jaffna. Later, the T-72 tanks were airlifted to Ladakh as well. These were remarkable feats in the aviation world.
The IAF is a world class mature and modern force. From 1978 to 1989, more than 20 types of aircraft including supersonic interceptors and contemporary weapon systems were inducted. The technical staff has proven capability to absorb new technology and maintain different types of planes. Impressed by the skills of the IAF, USSR asked them to carry out trials of the new interceptors while it was still on the secret list and was known as Fulcrum. The test pilots were happy with this plane and it was later inducted as MIG- 29. Our skies are safe due to the IAF.
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Brigadier Suresh Chandra Sharma (retd)
The writer served in the Army for 30 years. Post retirement he served the telecom industry with multinational and Indian corporates. He is also a freelance journalist and has interests in national security issues.[/column]