Air Chief Marshal Hrushikesh Moolgavkar,
PVSM,
MVC (15 August 1920 – 9 April 2015) was a former
Air officer
An air officer is an air force officer of the rank of air commodore or higher. Such officers may be termed "officers of air rank". While the term originated in the Royal Air Force, air officers are also to be found in many Commonwealth nations ...
in the
Indian Air Force. He served as the 9th
Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force from 1 February 1976 till 31 August 1978.
Early life and education
Moolgavkar was born on 14 August 1920 in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
.
He attended the
St. Mary's School, Mumbai and the
St. Xavier's College, Mumbai
St. Xavier's College is a private, Catholic, autonomous higher education institution run by the
Bombay Province of the Society of Jesus in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It was founded by the Jesuits on January 2, 1869. The college is aff ...
. Moving to the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
for higher education, he attended the
Malvern College.
He was studying there when
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
broke out.
Military career
Early career
Moolgavkar was commissioned into the Indian Air Force as an acting
Pilot Officer on 30 November 1940. He joined the
No. 1 Squadron IAF, commanded by Squadron Leader
Karun Krishna Majumdar, at
Peshawar
Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
.
He flew the
Hawker Hart
The Hawker Hart is a British two-seater biplane light bomber aircraft that saw service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was designed during the 1920s by Sydney Camm and manufactured by Hawker Aircraft. The Hart was a prominent British aircra ...
and the
Westland Lysander
The Westland Lysander is a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft that was used immediately before and during the Second World War.
After becoming obsolete in the army co-operation role, the aircraft's ...
aircraft. In early 1942, the squadron moved to
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
where he saw active service. In May 1942, he was promoted to the rank of
Flying Officer.
After the operations in Burma, he came back with the squadron to
Secunderabad where Squadron Leader
Subroto Mukerjee
Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee OBE (Bengali: সুব্রত মুখোপাধ্যায়) (5 March 1911 – 8 November 1960) was an Indian military officer who was the first Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) of the Indian Air Force. He wa ...
took command. The squadron then moved to
Trichy
Tiruchirappalli () ( formerly Trichinopoly in English), also called Tiruchi or Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with bein ...
and to
RAF Station Kohat.
On 1 April 1944, Moolgavkar was promoted to the acting rank of
Flight Lieutenant and transferred to
No. 4 Squadron IAF, commanded by Squadron Leader Geoffrey Sharp of the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
, at
Chittagong. He flew the
Supermarine Spitfire in
escort fighter
The escort fighter was a concept for a fighter aircraft designed to escort bombers to and from their targets. An escort fighter needed range long enough to reach the target, loiter over it for the duration of the raid to defend the bombers, and ...
role in supply dropping missions. In January 1945, while on a sortie, the engine of his Spitfire failed. He crash landed on a beach and was stuck upside-down. Luckily, a couple of
British Commandos
The Commando, Commandos, also known as the British Commandos, were formed during the World War II, Second World War in June 1940, following a request from Winston Churchill, for special forces that could carry out Raid (military), raids against ...
spotted the plane and rescued him.
He had multiple crushed vertebrae which required surgery and he spent about six months with his back in plaster. He got back to flying soon, joining the
No. 10 Squadron IAF.
In January 1947, Moolgavkar was promoted to the acting rank of
Squadron Leader
Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...
and took command of
No. 6 Squadron IAF at Kohat. After a short stint, he took command of No. 10 Squadron at
Kanpur. The squadron was equipped with the
Hawker Tempest II.
Post-Independence
During the
partition of India, he was commanding the squadron at Kanpur. he was in command till February 1948. In April, he attended the first course at the
Defence Services Staff College
, motto_lang = sa
, mottoeng = ''To War with Wisdom''
, established = (as the ''Army Staff College'', Deolali)
, type = Defence Service Training Institute
, affiliation =
, endowment =
, administrative_staff =
, faculty =
, pres ...
in
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...
. The college had relocated from
Quetta
Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه) is the tenth most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in south-west of the country close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is the capital of ...
after the
partition of India. After completing the staff course, he took command of No. 1 Operational Wing at
Srinagar from Wing Commander
Minoo Merwan Engineer
Air Marshal Minoo Merwan Engineer, PVSM, MVC, DFC (1 December 1921 – 31 December 1997) was a former Air Officer in the Indian Air Force. He is one of the most decorated officers in the Indian Air Force, with the second-highest civil decorati ...
.
Maha Vir Chakra
The No. 1 Operational Wing was in the thick of battle during the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. Moolgavkar led the planning and execution of
close air support during
Operation Bison in
Zoji La
Zoji La (sometimes Zojila Pass) is a high mountain pass in the Himalayas. It is in the Indian Union territory of Ladakh, Kargil district, Kashmir. Located in the Drass, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west, with the Drass ...
. He also flew sorties himself.
For his exceptional gallantry and leadership, Moolgavkar was decorated with the
Maha Vir Chakra
The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) () is the second highest military decoration in India, after the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. It replaced the B ...
(MVC), the second highest military decoration in India. He was among four IAF officers who were awarded the MVC during the war, the other three being Air Commodore
Mehar Singh
Padri Mehar Singh was one of the founding members of Fiji's Kisan Sangh when it was established in 1937. He remained a prominent member of the union until 1943, when he and Ramcharan Singh led a faction that supported the strike instigated by th ...
and Wing Commanders Minoo Merwan Engineer and Sidney Basil Noronha.
The citation for the
Maha Vir Chakra
The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) () is the second highest military decoration in India, after the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. It replaced the B ...
reads as follows:
Post-war career
After the war, in March 1950, he commanded a
detachment of
de Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the RAF, after the Gloster Meteor, and the first to be powered by ...
aircraft, which were recently received by the IAF. He led the detachment touring South India and in flying demonstrations in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
,
Poona,
Bangalore
Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...
and
Madras. In October 1950, he moved to Air headquarters as Deputy Director Operations. He was promoted to the acting rank of
Group Captain and appointed Director of Operations at Air HQ in May 1952. He became the first IAF officer to serve in this appointment, since the previous officers were from the RAF.
After a two-year stint at Air HQ, he took command of
Palam Air Force Station from Group Captain H N Chatterjee.
In October 1954, he was a part of a team of three, consisting of Air Commodore (later
Air Chief Marshal)
Pratap Chandra Lal
Air Chief Marshal Pratap Chandra Lal, DFC (6 December 1916 – 13 August 1982) was the Chief of Air Staff (CAS) of the Indian Air Force during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971. He served in the IAF from 1939 until his retirement in 1973. He ...
and
Flight Lieutenant (later Air Commodore) Roshan Lal Suri, which went to Europe to select new aircraft for the IAF. The team rejected the
Supermarine Swift, and chose the
Folland Gnat
The Folland Gnat is a British compact swept-wing subsonic fighter aircraft that was developed and produced by Folland Aircraft. Envisioned as an affordable light fighter in contrast to the rising cost and size of typical combat aircraft, it wa ...
, a decision which would hold India and the IAF in good stead during the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. During this tour, he became among the first Indians to break the sound barrier.
He was promoted substantive Group Captain on 1 April 1955.
The 3 Wing at Palam had
No. 7 Squadron and No. 10 Squadron under it, which were equipped with the Vampires.
After a four-year stint at Palam, he served in a staff appointment at the
Operational Command (later Western Air Command).
In early 1959, Moolgavkar was appointed
Air advisor to the
High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom
The High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom is the head of the High Commission of India to the United Kingdom. The High Commission is located at India House in London.
History
In 1919, a committee chaired by the Marquess of Crewe det ...
was
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit (''née'' Swarup Nehru; 18 August 1900 – 1 December 1990) was an Indian diplomat and politician who was the 6th Governor of Maharashtra from 1962 to 1964 and 8th President of the United Nations General Assembly from 19 ...
at
India House, London
The High Commission of India in London is the diplomatic mission of India in the United Kingdom. It is located in India House on Aldwych, between Bush House, what was Marconi House (now Citibank) and Australia House. It faces both the London Sc ...
.
Air rank
Moolgavkar was promoted to the acting rank of
Air Commodore and returned to India. He subsequently took over as the Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) of the Operational Command. In October 1962, the
Hawker Siddeley HS 748
The Hawker Siddeley HS 748 is a medium-sized turboprop airliner originally designed and initially produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Avro. It was the last aircraft to be developed by Avro prior to its absorption by Hawker Siddeley ...
arrived in India for a tour of demonstration flights. Moolgavkar led the team for this tour. He moved to Air HQ in June 1963, where he served as the Air Officer-in-Charge Policy and Plans. He was promoted substantive Air Commodore on 1 April 1964. He served in this appointment for a year-and-a-half before moving to the
Maintenance Command at
Nagpur
Nagpur (pronunciation: aːɡpuːɾ is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford's Economics report, Nagpur is projected to ...
. He served as the Senior Air & Administration Staff Officer (SAASO) of the Command.
Promoted to the acting rank of
Air Vice Marshal on 25 January 1967, he took command of the newly created HQ Western India at Pune. He was made substantive Air Vice Marshal on 1 April 1968 and appointed
Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C)
Central Air Command
''Nigrahya Rasava shastrava''
, colors =
, colors_label =
, battles = 1962 Sino-Indian War, East Pakistan Operations 1971, Operation Meghdoot, Orissa Super-Cyclone Relief, 1999
, anniversaries =
, commander1 = Air Marshal Amar Preet Si ...
at
Allahabad.
He was at the helm of the Central Air Command for three years, till March 1971.
On 1 April 1971, he was promoted to the acting rank of
Air Marshal and appointed
Commandant of the National Defence College
The Commandant of the National Defence College in India is the overall in-charge of all the functioning of the National Defence College including academics and administration. The Commandant of the college is a Three-star rank officer from the t ...
in
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Ho ...
. He assumed the office from
Vice Admiral Sourendra Nath Kohli
Admiral Sourendra Nath Kohli, PVSM (21 June 1916 – 21 January 1997) was an Indian Navy admiral who served as the 8th Chief of the Naval Staff from 1 March 1973 until 29 February 1976. Kohli served as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief (FOC-I ...
who was appointed the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief (FOC-in-C)
Western Naval Command
The Western Naval Command is one of the three command–level formations of the Indian Navy. It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. As the senior–most of the three formations, the command is responsible for the all naval forces in the A ...
.
He was promoted substantive Air Marshal in June 1972.
After a two-year stint at the helm of the NDC, in 1973, he took command of the
Western Air Command
, colors=
, colors_label=
, battles= 1962 Sino-Indian War, 1971 India-Pakistan War, Operation Meghdoot
, anniversaries=
, commander1= Air Marshal Sreekumar Prabhakaran, AVSM, VM
, commander1_label= Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief(AOC-in-C)
, n ...
, the biggest command in terms of resource, as its AOC-in-C.
In March 1975, Moolgavkar personally participated in the Western Air Command Inter-Squadron Gunnery Meet. He won the Staff Pilots Championship Trophy for firing rockets from a single-seater Hunter aircraft. As the
Commander-in-chief of the command, and at the age of 55, he was the envy of many younger pilots. In April, he took over as the Commodore Commandant of the squadron that he had commanded in the past - No. 10 Squadron.
Chief of Air Staff
In January 1976, the
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
appointed Moolgavkar to be the next
Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), succeeding Air Chief Marshal
Om Prakash Mehra
Air Chief Marshal Om Prakash Mehra, PVSM (19 January 1919 – 8 November 2015) was a former air officer in the Indian Air Force. He served as the Chief of the Air Staff from 1973 to 1976. He received Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM), the highes ...
.
He was promoted to the rank of
Air Chief Marshal took over as the 9th CAS on 31 January.
Soon after taking over as Chief, Moolgavkar and the
Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Jal Cursetji discussed about the handing over of the
maritime reconnaissance {{Unreferenced, date=March 2008
Maritime patrol is the task of monitoring areas of water. Generally conducted by military and law enforcement agencies, maritime patrol is usually aimed at identifying human activities.
Maritime patrol refers to ac ...
role from the Indian Air Force to the
Indian Navy
The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates si ...
. In accordance with this, the
Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation
The Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation is an American aircraft, a member of the Lockheed Constellation aircraft line. The L-1049 was Lockheed's response to the successful Douglas DC-6 airliner, first flying in 1950. The aircraft was also produc ...
aircraft of the
No. 6 Squadron IAF were transferred to the Navy. On 8 October 1976, the
INAS 312
The INAS 312 is an Indian naval air squadron based at INS Rajali.
History
The Navy’s first long range Maritime Reconnaissance squadron was commissioned with five ex IAF Super Constellation aircraft on 18 November 1976. Cdr R D Dhir was the ...
was commissioned at Goa.
Dates of rank
Personal life and death
The Moolgavkars had two children - a son Dr. Prakash and a daughter Jyoti.
Jyoti later wrote the biography of the former CAS titled ''Leading from the Cockpit: A Fighter Pilot’s Story''. The book was published and released in 2010.
See also
*
National Defence College
*
Commandant of the National Defence College
The Commandant of the National Defence College in India is the overall in-charge of all the functioning of the National Defence College including academics and administration. The Commandant of the college is a Three-star rank officer from the t ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moolgavkar, Hrushikesh
1920 births
2015 deaths
Chiefs of Air Staff (India)
Indian Air Force air marshals
Commandants of National Defence College, India
Indian Air Force
Indian Air Force officers
Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Recipients of the Maha Vir Chakra
Defence Services Staff College alumni