On Diwali night, Capt Khokhar had promised daughters an outing and dinner after he returned from test flightIt had been just a few months in the new job for Capt Manjit Khokhar, who joined the Punjab government as a pilot after flying planes in the US for 18 long years. And the 42-year-old was not happy flying the King Air plane, according to his sister Narender Kaur. “He was not paid his salary for the last month. He also complained that the Punjab government’s plane was not in a good shape. He would say the condition of the plane was so bad that it would certainly crash one day.”His prediction became a reality and the plane actually crashed near Ludhiana on Wednesday morning, claiming the life of Khokhar and another pilot.He leaves behind his two minor daughters who live with their mother in Chandigarh — Khokhar and his wife were divorced. “He called me up last night and told me that I should concentrate on my studies and that he would take us for an outing and for dinner once he returns,” said a distraught Niharika, elder of Khokhar’s two daughters. She is a student of Ydavindra Public School, Mohali. Khokhar’s former wife, too, was in a state of shock.Narender Kaur, with whom Khokhar lived in Sector 12-A here, said he had asked her to pack a packet of dry fruits for his friends. Before leaving for the flight in the morning, he also spoke to his father who always insisted that he should marry again, she added.Khokhar had returned to the city only on Tuesday afternoon. “Manjit had gone to Mumbai where the C-90 King Air plane had undergone some scheduled technical propeller service, after which it was brought to Chandigarh. Ever since his return, he was on the phone, talking to his friends. Late in the evening, we sat outside the house, watching people celebrate Diwali. He slept early, saying he had to go for the test flight in the morning for which he did not want to get late,” recalled Narender.Their father, Buta Singh is a former member of the Board of Control, HAFED, and lives in Ratia village in Hisar. Khokhar’s body will be taken there for cremation on Thursday.“After completing his diploma in commercial pilot training several years ago, he had left for the US where he stayed for around 18 years. It was only last year that he decided to return to India and settle down here. He joined the Ranbaxy group as a pilot and remained there till he got the Punjab government job,” said Ram Lal Singla, a family member. It was learnt that though he owned a night club in the US, Khokhar continued to work as a commercial pilot there.
