New Delhi:
In a historic first, 4 models of the Indian Air Pressure will obtain the distinguished ‘President’s Customary and Colors’ from President Droupadi Murmu on the Hindon airbase on March 8.
President Murmu shall be awarding the President’s Customary to 45 Squadron and 221 Squadron and the President’s Colors to 11 Base Restore Depot and 509 Sign Unit, the defence ministry mentioned.
This would be the first time within the historical past of the IAF that 4 models shall be awarded President’s Customary and Colors collectively, it mentioned.
The award of the President’s Customary and Colors is the best army honour for any armed forces unit. The 4 models chosen for the coveted awards have made stellar contributions to IAF’s historical past.
The 221 squadron is named the ‘Valiants’. The historical past of the squadron dates again to 14 Feb 1963 when it was raised at Barrackpore, outfitted with Vampire plane.
Barely two years after its formation, the Squadron was pressed into motion within the Japanese theatre through the 1965 Indo-Pak warfare, the place it made commendable contributions to the general warfare effort.
In August 1968, the squadron was one of many first to be re-equipped with the Su-7 supersonic assault fighter.
Through the 1971 Indo-Pak Warfare, working within the Japanese theatre, the squadron undertook in depth counter air, shut air assist and picture reconnaissance missions.
The famed assault over the Kurmitola and Tezgaon airbases resulted within the destruction of a number of Pakistan Air Pressure (PAF) Sabres on the bottom and proved to be pivotal in rendering the PAF ineffective within the Japanese theatre.
The 45 squadron can be known as the ‘Flying Daggers’. Raised in 1959 with Vampire plane, the squadron took half in ‘Operation Vijay’ for the liberation of Goa from Portuguese rule in 1960.
On August 1, 1965, Pakistan launched an assault within the Chhamb sector with overwhelming superiority in troops and armour. The 45 squadron was the primary IAF unit to launch offensive missions on the primary day of the battle.
Regardless of flying the classic Vampires, the uncooked braveness and professionalism of the pilots was sufficient to stall the enemy armour and the unit destroyed ten enemy tanks.
Subsequently, ‘Flying Daggers’ flew 178 sorties in assist of the Indian Military. After the warfare, the unit was re-equipped with MiG-21 FL fighters.
Within the 1971 Indo-Pak warfare, the unit was accountable for air defence in Punjab and Rajasthan sectors, flying 258 missions, which have been instrumental in safeguarding the ahead air bases towards enemy air assaults.
In 1982, the unit was outfitted with the MiG-21 Bis plane.
11 Base Restore Depot is a premier and solely fighter plane base restore depot of the IAF that was established below Upkeep Command in April 1974 at Ojhar, Nashik.
Su-7 was the primary plane to be overhauled by the Depot and, within the subsequent years, variants of MiG-21, MiG-23 and MiG-29 plane have been overhauled.
The 509 sign unit was established on March 1, 1965, and is presently functioning as an Air Defence Path Centre in Meghalaya.
The unit has been functioning with the THD 1955 radar since 1995.
The watershed moments within the unit’s historical past date again to the Bangladesh Liberation Warfare of 1971, whereby 509 SU emerged because the epicentre of all air defence actions over East Pakistan.
A defining second got here with the precision strike on the Governor’s Home in Dhaka, orchestrated from the operations room of the unit.
(Aside from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)