IAF Wing commander Abhinandan returns; first photos

IAF pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was handed over to Indian officials at the Wagah border in Punjab. Abhinandan's parents — his father, an IAF veteran — had traveled to Amritsar from Chennai this morning to receive him on arrival

Updated: March 4, 2019 06:45 IST

1 / 8
Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured on the morning of February 27 after his MiG21 Bison aircraft was shot down by Pakistan. His parachute landed across the Line of Control (LoC) and he was in Islamabad’s custody for nearly 60 hours. Abhinandan returned on March 1 after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced he would be released him as a “gesture of peace”. Tensions between Pakistan and India escalated after the IAF bombed terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed’s biggest training camp near Balakot inside Pakistan.

2 / 8
Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik created a sand sculpture of IAF pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman at the beach in Puri (PTI photo)

3 / 8
Two days after he was captured by the Pakistan Army, Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman Friday is home. (PTI photo)

4 / 8
Indian pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan, stands under armed escort near Pakistan-India border in Wagah, Pakistan in this March 1, 2019 image from a video footage. (REUTERS/PTV via Reuters TV)

5 / 8
Heavy security arrangement at Wagah border ahead of IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman's release from Pakistan. (Express photo: Gurmeet Singh)

6 / 8
IAF pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan being warmly recieved by BSF authorities after being released by Pakistan.

7 / 8
IAF pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan, inside a vehicle at Wagah border, on the outskirts of Amritsar after his release. (REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui)