Cooke and Mamgain were both awarded Vir Chakra (VrC) for their valiant effort.
This is the first time the IAF fought a limited war, hitherto thought to be an unlikely eventuality, as air power and escalation to an all-out war were thought to be synonymous. (a) To escort fighter-bomber aircraft on their Ops missions. air power is not to be frittered away on insignificant targets like machine gun posts and trenches, but on large targets of consequence (like the supply camp at Muntho Dhalo, enemy Battalion HQ on top of Tiger Hill, etc). 45 and 220 Squadrons and 14 Mystere aircraft of No. The first mission flown on 08 Sep was by four Hunters of 20 Sqn getting airborne at 1800hr. While this would lead to apparent inaccuracies in weapon delivery, there is, thus, a need for pinpoint accuracy in conditions where that very attribute is severely degraded by the factors mentioned above. Not the one to let his opponent escape, Sandhu followed him down to low levels and shot him down with a well-aimed volley from his cannon.
Captain Magill and his wingman thought they had caught the two Fulcrums off guard, when the MiG-29s suddenly began maneuvering and turned aggressively toward their formation. Variations in air temperature and density, altering drag indices and a host of other factors (which have never been calculated by any manufacturer for this type of altitude) cause weapons to go off their mark; for the same reasons, normally reliable computerised weapon aiming devices give inaccurate results.
Till 05 Sep 1965, IAF had not committed any other aircraft beyond the Mysteres, Vampires and Gnats at Pathankot. These operations had a significant effect on the enemy's resilience, stamina and very will to fight. On 01 Sep 1965, Marshal of the Indian Air Force (MIAF) Arjan Singh , then the Chief of the Air Staff, ordered air strikes against the Pakistan Forces. Operation Safedsagar was, therefore, a turning point in the history of military aviation, and an operation that will, no doubt, be discussed and dissected for the next few years. Without any opposition they carried out a perfect attack totally devastating the yard and the train. This, more than anything else, made the lightning campaign leading to the liberation of Bangladesh, look so effortless. In an instant, the sabres right wing disintegrated and the enemy aircraft fell from the sky. Almost from the very beginning of the operations, IAF intellects were busy ticking over in a near constant brain-storming session aimed at deriving lessons from Operation Safedsagar. (c) Battle Damage Assessment (BDA) mission(s). Losses due to airstrikes and inability to evacuate their casualties were also mentioned in the intercepts. The target was Chawinda and as they approached at low level, they were welcomed by anti- aircraft (AA) gun fire and Sabre aircraft.
On receipt of the information, the Gnats zoomed up to 30,000 ft in less than 90 sec and scanned the area for intruders. The Keelor brothers have the unique distinction of flying the same kind of combat aircraft from different Squadrons and also claiming kills in the same war. No SOPs existed for operations at high altitude pertaining with heights to fly, dive angles, weapon release heights, escape routes, weather impact in afternoon operations, range / endurance versus weapon loads, search / rescue, helicopter support etc. In this context, the basic functions of air power have been repeated, though on a much larger scale, when compared to the IAF's operations in this area during 1947-48, when IAF Tempests carried out strafing and rocket attacks on the intruders and Dakotas ferried in as well as paradropped troops and supplies. At times, PAF F-16s orbited a scant 15 kms (on their own side of the LOC) from our strike formations attacking Pakistani targets, kept at bay by our own air defence fighters flying a protective pattern above the strike. Charles Sly Magill flying F-15C 85-0107 was leading a flight of eight F-15s on the second day of the war. The 14 day war was IAFs finest hour.
As then and now, when called upon by the nation the IAF has joined as an equal partner to the Army to meet the national objective. As then and now, when called upon by the nation the IAF has joined as an equal partner to the Army to meet the national objective. Sqn Ldr Trevor Keelor shoots down a Pakistani Sabre Jet F-86F aircraft in the Chhamb sector flying in his light weight Gnat fighter aircraft. 3 and 31 Sqn took off from Pathankot for the Chhamb Sector.
Firstly, in the area of interdiction of enemy supplies, the successful and incessant attacks on the enemy's logistic machine had, over the last few weeks, culminated in a serious degradation of the enemy's ability to sustain himself in an increasing number of areas. It is surmised that airstrikes contributed to a significant portion of the enemy's casualty list, as apparent in the numbers. Gautam did his job perfectly and the other Canberras thereafter proceeded to engage targets including the Runway, a Bulk Petroleum Installation, Aircraft on ground and other ground facilities. One significant fact must not be lost sight of; of the two warring sides, it is the Pakistani Army that suffered air strikes, which, obviously, contributed significantly to its casualties. PAF had moved the bulk of its forces to the rear base of Peshawar.
Coming close to their target, they pulled up to their drop height of 10,000 ft. The series of attacks against Pt 4388 in the Dras sector was an excellent example of how lethal airstrikes combined with timely reconnaissance detected the enemy plans to shift to alternate supply routes which were once again effectively attacked.
While the disputed Himalayan border was the main pretext of the war, other underlying issues also played a vital role. There had been a series of armed border skirmishes after the 1959 Tibetan uprising, when India granted asylum to the Dalai Lama. Even at that time, though, the "back-room boys", that anonymous bunch of faceless experts who lived their lives poring over reconnaissance (recce) photographs, noting detail after painstaking detail, provided the target information that ultimately formed the basis of the bombing missions. In the plains, a 1000 pounder bomb landing 25 yards away from the target would still severely disable, if not flatten, it. The seventh aspect is the high degree of imagination, flexibility and IAF-Army coordination which marked every phase of the operation. Missionemphasis throughout was on interdiction. The intent was to degrade the Indian Air Arm at the start of hostilities. Pre-emptive strikes were launched by the Pakistan Air Force against IAF bases.
IAF personnel were awarded 01 Param Vir Chakra, 13 Maha Vir Chakras and 113 Vir Chakras for their heroic performance in the war. Captain Magills aircraft, F-15C 85-0107, now performs its air superiority mission with the 44th Fighter Squadron at Kadena Air Base. Your Mirage boys with their precision laser guided bombs targeted an enemy Battalion HQ in the Tiger Hill area with tremendous success. Flt Lt Jimmy Bhatia distinguished himself on that day. In the Sialkot area itself, they captured 180 sq km territory and were only four km away from Sialkot by the time they declared ceasefire.
The Gnats at low level, spotting the Sabres at approximately 20,000 ft, immediately commenced a climbing turn and engaged them. Far from being an off-the-cuff quick reaction affair, each airstrike is the end result of a carefully planned chain of events spanning several areas of specialisation. While this would lead to apparent inaccuracies in weapon delivery, there is, thus, a need for pinpoint accuracy in conditions where that very attribute is severely degraded by the factors mentioned above.
Losses due to airstrikes and inability to evacuate their casualties were also mentioned in the intercepts. The thirteenth of September saw another first in the war. Sqn Ldr Keelor picked up a pair of PAF F-86F Sabre Jets, he maneuvered his formation to get behind the enemy aircraft. Towards the beginning of the month, the Squadron heightened its level of preparedness and observed a couple of maintenance days to increase the serviceability state of the aircraft. From early 1971, as the political situation on the sub-continent deteriorated, the IAF was alerted to the possibility of another armed conflict. These operations had a significant effect on the enemy's resilience, stamina and very will to fight.
The first blood of a new Indo-Pakistan air war had been drawn. Flying at a height of about 100 ft Flt Lt Pathania maneuvered to get in firing position behind the accelerating PAF Sabre aircraft, closing into a distance of less than 500 meters Pathania opened fire and achieved a direct hit on to the enemy Sabre. On 04 Sep 1965, Flt Lt V. S. Pathania flying a Gnat aircraft shot down a second PAF Sabre Jet aircraft over the Chhamb sector. All rights reserved. The aircraft is one of seven F-15s with the 44th and 67th Fighter Squadrons to have scored air-to-air victories during Desert Storm that are still serving as frontline fighters. (d) If so dictated by results of BDA, or by follow-up recce, repeated airstrikes. Throughout the conflict the IAF established a highly credible serviceability rate which exceeded 80 per cent. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. , the effort put into air defence escorts and area Combat Air Patrolling by day as well as night proved an effective deterrent which ensured total air superiority.
The army needed information not only on the fortifications and bridges but also on the degree of preparedness of Pakistani Army formations. The effect of accurate attacks is best summed up by a message received from one of the HQ of the Indian Army. "You guys have done a wonderful job. As the conflict looked imminent, Scorpios were on standby, with two aircraft always armed and ready to launch at the drop of a hat. with the enemy casualties far in excess of those suffered by us. It is, perhaps for this reason that NATO, after deploying 100 Apache attack helicopters in Greece, reconsidered bringing them into Kosovo till the shooting was over, as they felt the environment didn't justify it. The Sabres were intercepted by the Gnats. is that of attack chopper operations. As a result, whether Army or IAF, choppers were constrained to operate in SAM-free areas. Notwithstanding the successful campaign of December 1971 which created both history and geography, the Indian Air Force had lessons to draw from subsequent analyses of the conflict, although for the most part, these lessons dictated refinement rather than any fundamental change. On 02 Sep 1965, IAF aircraft carried out fighter sweeps & the Mystere aircraft carried out photo recce sorties in the Chhamb sector. After refueling with a KC-135, an E-3 Sentry alerted the captain to the presence of two MiG-29 Fulcrums near their target area.
The second major impact of air power in this operation was in the area of casualties. In a classic air action in the Western desert, four Hunters of the OCU, detachment at Jaisalmer destroyed an entire armoured regiment at Longewala, literally stopping the enemy offensive in its tracks. The primacy of interdiction targets as opposed to Battlefield Air Strikes (BAS) targets was clearly brought out, as also the fact that air power is not to be frittered away on insignificant targets like machine gun posts and trenches, but on large targets of consequence (like the supply camp at Muntho Dhalo, enemy Battalion HQ on top of Tiger Hill, etc). The recce missions also became rare, as very soon the orders to halt such missions were issued by the Air Force. As a result, whether Army or IAF, choppers were constrained to operate in SAM-free areas.
Finally, there was a ceasefire on 23 September 1965 and both India and Pakistan accepted the armistice. (c) Air Defence of airfields (On ORP duties).
The IAF had good reason for satisfaction with its showing during the December 1971 conflict.
In the mountains, however, a miss of a few yards would be as good as the proverbial mile, due to the undulating terrain and masking effects.
While the first strike on Sargodha was mounted by seven Mysteres of 01 Sqn (The Tigers) led by Wg Cdr OP Taneja, 08 Sqn simultaneously attacked the air bases at Bhagatanwala in the vicinity. On 9 September, Flight Lieutenant Trilochan Singh of No.3 Squadron destroyed tanks and armoured vehicles near Chawinda.
A Sidewinder was launched by the Starfighter, however, providence was on the side of the Canberras and this missile missed its mark. The Indian Air Force and Army troops destroyed around 450 Pakistani tanks and captured 38 tanks in serviceable condition.
Learn how your comment data is processed. Due to the very different attributes of the atmosphere, even weapons do not perform as per sea-level specifications. He split his flight into two four-ship formations using the call signs ZEREX and CITGO respectively. Normally, an enemy defending a well fortified position (in this case, Pakistan) suffers between 3-6 times less casualties than does the force on the offensive. In the aerial battles with the Pakistan Air Force, the IAF shot down 73 Pakistani aircraft with the loss of 35 aircraft. This would prove far more effective than a case where the Army proceeded as per its own plans made earlier in isolation, and called for air support when they felt it was required. His second hastily-fired Sparrow impacted the center of the expanding fireball, obliterating it. (b) To carry out patrolling of Indian skies. Any time the target was spotted, a very high success rate invariably resulted. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); What are you waiting for? Captain Draegers missile hit his target head on completely destroying the aircraft. High altitude operations always come with challenges like severe degradation of aircraft and weapon performance.
At times, PAF F-16s orbited a scant 15 kms (on their own side of the LOC) from our strike formations attacking Pakistani targets, kept at bay by our own air defence fighters flying a protective pattern above the strike. As soon as the SAMs were no longer a threat ZEREX flight regrouped and resumed stalking the Iraqi Fulcrums. They are on the run in other sectors also. It is felt that without the use of air power, our own casualties could have approached if not exceeded four figures. The Scorpios were ready for war, but were only called upon to undertake a few recce missions. With ammunition still left, they also targeted armoured columns near Kasur. Captain Magill, a Marine F/A-18 Hornet pilot and Top Gun graduate, was on exchange duty with the Air Forces 58th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 33rd Tactical Fighter Wing (Provisional).
However, the MiGs were unaware of the F-15s that were now tracking them; they had their sights on a different target, a Navy F-14 Tomcat. Their target was the Raiwind railway yard.
Besides the capability of the machine itself vis-a-vis the area of operation, the creation of the right air defence environment is a crucial factor which would determine the employment of this platform. Other encounters were to follow over the next 10 days, within both Indian and Pakistani airspace, before full-scale war began on 3 December. Perhaps the most fitting tribute to IAFs contribution in the war came from Lt Gen AAK Niazi, Commander of the Pakistani forces in the East. However, the most telling effects on the ground were from intercepts of enemy radio revealing severe shortages of rations, water, medicines and ammunition. It is felt that without the use of air power, our own casualties could have approached if not exceeded four figures. Targeting Peshawar was doomed to be ill-fated, either by day or by night.
When asked by a senior IAF officer about the reason for his surrender when most of his army was intact, he walked up to this officer, pointed at the wings on his uniform and said, because of this, you, the Indian Air Force.. It is surmised that airstrikes contributed to a significant portion of the enemy's casualty list, as apparent in the numbers. As told by James DAngina, 353rd Special Operations Group historian, in the article Kadena F-15 holds last Marine aerial victory, during the 1991 Gulf War, the Eagle scored the last recorded air-to-air victory by a U.S. Marine Corps pilot. In the mountains, however, a miss of a few yards would be as good as the proverbial mile, due to the undulating terrain and masking effects. However, once revised and modified profiles, tactics and manner of system usage had been perfected, the accuracy of the airstrikes improved dramatically. The F-15s provided air cover for a strike package against Al Taqaddum and Al Assad airfields. Totally unfamiliar surroundings in the Kargil area made target recognition difficult from the ground, let alone from a fast moving aircraft.
Back in 1962, hill flying was severely restricted as neither the Govt nor the IAF expected to fight an enemy in the mountains. Effectiveness versus vulnerability would need to be examined; during Op Safedsagar, the abundance of man portable SAMs in all enemy-held areas precluded the effective employment of attack choppers.
In the plains, a 1000 pounder bomb landing 25 yards away from the target would still severely disable, if not flatten, it. On the Eastern front, the Indian forces launched a sophisticated campaign which included rapid-moving infantry and armour advancing from three directions, airborne and heliborne assaults, missile bombardments from ships and an amphibious landing, the IAF's task being primarily direct support of the ground forces. In this the IAF succeeded in strangling the enemy supply arteries, amply testified to by enemy radio intercepts.
As Cooke and Mamgain arrived over KKD, they saw the Sabres in attack and they both split up and proceeded to tackle the Sabres. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Sixthly, the effort put into air defence escorts and area Combat Air Patrolling by day as well as night proved an effective deterrent which ensured total air superiority. He was awarded Vir Chakra for his daring and valuable performance. 9, 23 and 45 squadrons played a very significant role during the operations: In an aerial battle on 19 September 1965, No.9 Squadron pilots shot down two Sabre Jets-one was shot down by Squadron Leader Keelor and the second by Flight Lieutenant Kapila. Due to acute shortage of helicopter pilots during the time, six pilots from the Squadron were attached to various helicopter units to undertake second pilot duties.
While conventional long-accepted air power theories no longer held good, a new set of operating paradigms had to be evolved almost overnight to cope with the situation. The pilot who undertook the operations was Sqn Ldr Jag Mohan Nath, a veteran of the 1962 Ops.
Gone are the days of fighters screaming in at deck level, acting as a piece of extended artillery.
One significant fact must not be lost sight of; of the two warring sides, it is the Pakistani Army that suffered air strikes, which, obviously, contributed significantly to its casualties. This was followed by a go ahead given on 25 May by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) to the IAF to mount attacks on the infiltrators without crossing the LoC. A noteworthy fact is that there was not a single operation on ground that was not preceded by airstrikes, each and every one of which was the result of coordinated planning between 15 Corps and the AOC, J&K. Four Gnats led by Sqn Ldr Trevor Keelor, flying in a tactical formation at low level (barely 100 feet above ground), were heading towards the combat zone in Chhamb sector. On 20 October 1962, the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) launched two attacks, 1000 kilometers apart. Fatally damaged, the Sabre crashed just short of Sargodha. Gnat aircraft of No. The special characteristic of 1971 War was the complete coordination and co-operation achieved among the three arms of Indias Defence Forces. 