My Years With The IAF

This is the first time that an Air Chief is sharing his thoughts and memories with the reading public. His span of service covers a period of thirty-three years: from the end of 1939 to the beginning of 1973. It includes the Burma campaign of World War II, the restricted fighting in Kashmir in 1947 and 1948, the Chinese debacle in 1962 and the two full scale wars with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971. He had 4,274 hrs of flying with the Air Force to his credit and the experience of flying 58 types of aircraft from Wapitis to supersonic jets. In 1965 he was the Vice Chief of Air Staff and in 1971 the Chief. His honesty and forthrightness many readers will find engaging… but perhaps a few who were on the scene then may find them unpalatable.

In a way this is the story of aviation in India, in particular of the Indian Air Force. It is a story of a real life adventure the genesis, growth and achievements of the youngest of the three defence services. Sir Winstom Churchill said of the RAF: “Never before in the history of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.” That is true also of the Indian Air Force.

1. Down Memory Lane

2. Indian Air Force Volunteer Reserve

3. Contribution to the War Effort

4. Independence

5. Kashmir 1947-48: The First Round

6. Coming of Age

7. Interlude—IAC

8. Chinese Checkers

9. Indo-Pak War 1965: The Second Round

10. The Preliminaries

11. Planning for Operations

12. The Eastern Sector

13. The Western Sector

14. South-western Sector

15. Central Air Command

16. Summing Up

Appendix

Index