Group Captain Virendera Singh Pathania was an Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter pilot reputed for making the first confirmed aerial

dogfight A dogfight, or dog fight, is an aerial battle between fighter aircraft conducted at close range. Dogfighting first occurred in Mexico in 1913, shortly after the invention of the airplane. Until at least 1992, it was a component in every majo ...

kill of independent India when he shot down a

Pakistan Air Force , "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional) , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = ...

(PAF) Sabre Jet with his

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 ...

on 4 September, 1965. For this action, he was awarded the

Vir Chakra Vir Chakra (pronunciation: ʋ iː ɾ a tʃ a kɾa) is an Indian wartime military bravery award presented for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy on the battlefield and is third in precedence in wartime gallantry awards a ...

.Indian Air Force awards
On 14 December, 1971, he was awarded the

Vayu Sena Medal The Vayu Sena Medal is a military decoration, usually awarded in peacetime for a job well done in the Indian Air Force. However, it has been granted during times of conflict for acts of gallantry in the face of enemy, though not in the same nu ...

for his role as a commander. While working under him, twenty-six-year-old flying officer PVC Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon single-handedly engaged with six Sabre Jets. Pathania made another unconfirmed kill on 16 December, 1971, the day Gen. Niazi, Commander of the Eastern Command of the Pakistan Army surrendered to Gen. Aurora in Bangladesh.

Biography

During the

Sino-Indian War The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tibet ...

, the IAF was only involved in a supportive capacity. Flight Lieutenant Virendera Singh Pathania of No. 23 Squadron IAF made sorties on the perforated steel-plated Chushul airport for photo-reconnaissance.

Indo-Pakistani Air War of 1965 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 saw the Indian and Pakistani Air Forces engaged in large-scale aerial combat against each other for the first time since the Partition of India in 1947. The war took place during the course of September 1965 ...

began on 1st September 1965 after PAF dominated the skies with their F-86 and F-104 and making 4 kills of IAF Hunter planes on the very first day. However their supremacy was overshadowed when on 3rd September 1965 a Sabre was hit and a Starfigher had to leave the skies after it was attacked by Pathania who said on his radio "We shall meet again". Air Marshal Arjun Singh on that day remarked on that day's event that tyranny of PAF is over and 'Sabre slayers' were born leading Pakistani intelligence to hurriedly label Gnats as most dangerous. Amar Jit Singh Sandhu, Johnny Greene, Trevor Keelor, Virendera Singh Pathania became Sabre Slayers and were awarded Vir Chakras. During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, he was awarded the

for shooting down F-86 with his

jet on 4 September. Pakistani officer N.M Butt of F-86 PAF ejected safely and the wreckage of Sabre Jet was recovered near

Akhnoor Akhnoor is a city and municipal committee, near city of Jammu in Jammu district of Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It lies 28 km away from Jammu city. Akhnoor is on the bank of the Chenab River, just before it enters the P ...

Bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

in Jammu and Kashmir. IAF declared it as the second kill of independent India. However PAF recognizes 4th September 1965 as first kill by Pathania after it disputed the 3rd September kill of Trevor Keelor for which Pakistan claims that damaged F-86 managed to land safely at Sargodha air base and awarded Sitara-e-Jurat to Wing Commander then Flight Lieutenant Yusuf Ali Khan who later made 1 kill in the war. On 6 December of the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...

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 ...

Pathania of No. 18 Squadron IAF and Flying Officer Boppayya scrambled an incoming raid by four F-86 aircraft by intercepting their course in Srinagar. On 14 December, 1971, he was awarded the

for his commanding lead of

Air Traffic Control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...

(ATC) while Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon PVC single-handedly engaged in a suicidal

with six F-86 Sabre Jet Pakistani airplanes in Srinagar while deterring attackers from their prime targets. Two days later, on 16 December, 1971, Pathania avenged the death of Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon by making an unconfirmed kill of an F-86 on the day of Pakistan Army's Eastern Command's surrender, marking it as last and lone kill entry by Gnat in List of aerial victories during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

References

{{Reflist 1937 births 1995 deaths Pilots of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Pilots of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Indian aviation record holders Recipients of the Vir Chakra Recipients of the Vayu Sena Medal Indian Air Force officers Indian military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 People from Kangra district Military personnel from Himachal Pradesh