‘A few good men made all the difference’ “THE first airmen, in 1931, were called hawai sipahis. The IAF was formally set up as an independent service the next year. At that time, the British did not have much faith in the abilities of Indians. Even the No. 1 squadron, which was formed in 1932, was short of Indian pilots. From a fledgling force to a force to reckon with, the transformation happened because of more than a few good men. Leading the pack, of course, was the first Indian to command a squadron and the first Indian Commander-in-Chief Subroto Mukherjee. He was a very good squadron commander, who looked after the men as if they were his children. He was a disciplinarian, who taught his men the benefits of moderation and made participation in sports mandatory. Then there was Wing Commander ‘Jumbo’ Majumdar, an extremely intelligent, daring and considerate man who did very well during World War II’’, and Mehar Singh, popularly known as ‘Baba’, who commanded the No. 6 Squadron. He was a great flier with a technical mind. Alongside these heroes, I remember the men I lost during operations on the Burma front in WWII. Of the 20 pilots who flew out with me to Imphal in 1944, only five returned home. Our land forces were surrounded by the Japanese, and completely cut off from all road links. Their only back-up was the Air Force. Despite the mounting odds, we launched an offensive against the Japanese; it proved to be a turning point in the course of WWII. Kargil, in comparison to the war in which I first saw action, was a small affair. But our men touched new heights in gallantry in those snowy peaks. Our people were there on peaks as high as 13,000 and 18,000 feet. But they acquitted themselves extremely well — the IAF helped the Army win the war — though victory extracted a heavy price in terms of casualties. Although I retired from the IAF some time ago, I have diligently followed the Force’s fortunes. The IAF is very modern technologically, the way it adapts to new aircraft is commendable. But it should never forget that the challenge lies in avoiding flying accidents, especially with the MiG series. I think the force needs to prioritise its targets to lower accident rates. I also think the government need to increase the outlay for defence. The Army, Navy and Air Force all need modern, up-to-date weapons. The government of India spends only 2.5 per cent of the GDP on defence. All modern European nations spend much more to maintain their technological edge. Despite that, the morale of the Services is high. I personally enjoyed every bit of my tenure in the IAF; it is a life well-lived and well enjoyed.’’ (as told to Irene O’Brien) ‘Show of Readiness helped avert Total War in Kargil’ The second important contribution made by the Indian Air Force was shortening the war. The conflict ended in late July and if the enemy had held on for another three or four months or so, we would have been hard pressed to vacate the aggression before the year was out. Interestingly, every one of the positions reoccupied by our Army had been first attacked by our Air Force. The Air Force operated, perforce, under conditions where its effectiveness is the minimum and it goes to the credit of the aircrew that they were as effective as they were. As an example, the much-talked-about Tiger Hill was very successfully attacked from the air and when our Army units later reached the top, they found that the position was held by only seven enemy soldiers — the rest had run away. Again, air attacks on the Supply Dumps at Muntho Dhalo and elsewhere ensured the rapid end to the conflict. Radio intercepts of enemy communications, time and again, spoke of the damage caused by our aircraft. Possibly, the highest praise for the Indian Air Force came from the then Foreign Minister of Pakistan — Sartaj Aziz. When he visited India as early as on June 12, a mere 16 days since the start of the air action, he gave three conditions for the start of a dialogue and the very first condition was a halt to the air strikes. The weapon systems with our Air Force were really not suited for the type of warfare and some very notable innovations were successfully introduced. Use of Handycam VCR cameras, introduction of a system for effective bombing from high levels, fielding of untried equipment, use of untried tactics, and the spectacular tasking of fighter aircraft to accurately attack targets in unfriendly high-altitude terrain from low levels at night are but some examples of the high spirit, professionalism and discipline of the officers and men of the Air Force who participated in the Kargil conflict. Even with the benefit of hindsight, the Air Force acquitted itself admirably and in keeping with its reputation and traditions.
