'Recording of his video message caused delay in his handing over'
IAF Flying Officer Jawahar Lal Bhargava was forced to stayed in the POW camp at Rawalpindi for the year that followed only to be released in December 1972.
Two important Corps Commands at Multan and Bahawalpur, as also the posts of Adjutant General and Quartermaster General at General Headquarters now stand vacant, reveals Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
Earlier, Pakistani military spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor claimed that two Indian Air Force pilots were arrested. One pilot is injured and has been shifted to a hospital, while another one is unhurt, the spokesman had said.
The officer was involved in a dog fight with Pakistani fighter aircraft and was awarded a Shaurya Chakra for taking down an F-16 combat aircraft during the engagement.
The new patches given to the 51 Squadron of IAF depict a MiG21 in the foreground along with a red-coloured F-16 with 'Falcon Slayers' written on top and 'AMRAAM Dodgers' written at the bottom of it.
'During the aerial engagement, one MiG 21 Bison of the IAF shot down an F-16 in Nowshera sector,' the IAF said in a statement.
The action took place on the high seas at the peak of the Monsoon season in the first half of July when Pakistan Navy Ship Alamgir moved from its side to Indian waters across the maritime boundary line between the two countries, Government sources told ANI.
'We were firing at Patton tanks that were moving towards India.' 'Fighter aircraft are the biggest menace for tanks because they come at great speed, attack from a height and their rockets are lethal.' 'The Hunter travels at 400, 420 knots. One knot is 1.6 times a km, so it was at a speed of 700, 800 km/hr.' 'You come at great speed and when you see the tanks, you pull up because attacks are always done in a dive.' 'You go up to 3,000 to 4,000 feet and then dive on to the target and let off your rockets...'
Militants armed with automatic weapons, grenades and wearing suicide vests tried to storm two heavily-guarded airbases in Quetta, the capital of Pakistan's Balochistan province, but the attacks were thwarted by security forces which killed 10 attackers suspected to be foreigners.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed anguish over the loss of lives and stressed the need for peace "if we want to save the people of the state".
The trilateral alliance between India, Afghanistan and Iran on the strategic Chabahar port is a security threat to Pakistan, defence experts in Islamabad have said and asked the government to use diplomatic manoeuvres to avert falling into an "abyss of isolation".
The JIT will be taken to only those areas of the air force station that were accessed by the terrorists, who attacked the base in the early hours of January 2 this year.
"These three officers have primarily been held responsible for the incident. Their services have been terminated by the central government with immediate effect. Termination orders have been served upon the officers on August 23," it said.
The US actions can be seen as a riposte to India's neutral position on the Ukraine crisis, its continuing import of Russian arms and oil thus undermining Western sanctions, argues Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
A US count of Pakistan's F-16 fleet has found that all the jets are present and accounted for, a report claims.
Just 21 then, a young air force officer looks back at the 1971 war, which was like a baptism by fire in the fauj.
The statements the separatists make, the abominable tableaux at their parades, the slogans, posters, and selfies with assault rifles are not India's problem. If they are a nuisance, it should bother their host countries, because they are armed and have their own underworld with deadly gang rivalries. Significantly, none of this happens in the US -- only in snowflaky Canada, points out Shekhar Gupta.
The defence ministry on Friday said a technical malfunction in the course of a routine maintenance led to the accidental firing of a missile on March 9.
After attracting criticism on the social media for "taking credit", Khurshid on Sunday said that he had only "stated the truth".
Out of its 47 operational satellites, India currently has six to eight satellites which are used entirely for military purposes.
Citing details of the contract from the American Federal Procurement Data System, the BBC report claimed that Pakistan signed two contracts with American companies named "Global Military" and "Northrop Grumman" for the sale of 155mm shells.
After a meeting in the Parliament Library, the leaders of these parties issued a joint statement, expressing concern over the prevailing security situation in the country.
During the 1971 war, he flew several "active attack missions" to heavily defended targets like the Governor House in Dhaka, which became instrumental in forcing Pakistan's surrender, a former colleague said.
In a sea-air coordinated operation, narcotics worth Rs 480 crore were seized from a Pakistani boat with six crew in the Arabian Sea near Porbandar by a multi-agency team led by the Indian Coast Guard, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.
Pakistani officials handed over Varthaman to Indian officials, including from the IAF, at the Attari-Wagah Border.
Most of India's reserves for war in the mountains have been sucked in by the standoff with China. A large part of India's airpower has also similarly been committed on the eastern border. By moving these reserves to the China border, India has been weakened vis-a-vis Pakistan. All in all, the nightmare scenario for India of a two-front war may well come true, warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
In a tweet, Pakistani military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor said, "Repetitions don't make truth of a lie. Despite claiming possession of evidence on shooting F16, IAF still short of presenting it."
The award is slated to be received by commanding officer Group Captain Satish Pawar on October 8.
'There was plenty of pushing, pulling and jostling going on as everyone wanted to see what was going on at the table.'
The IED that pierced the rooftop of one of the IAF buildings at the Jammu airport carried less than one kg of RDX and a cocktail of other chemicals whereas the one that was dropped on the ground contained a little over one kg of the deadly explosives along with some ball bearings.
Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said the IAF is "always cautious and alert" to check any untoward aerial movement on the border.
The ministry sources said some of the projects were initiated before the 2019 elections have been concluded after the government was formed.
Pakistan's claim comes in the wake of tense relations between the two countries in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack.
India's doctrinal policy shift in combating terror by carrying out the Balakot air strikes inside Pakistan, appointment of a Chief of Defence Staff and hastening work on military modernisation marked a new beginning in 2019 in dealing with complex security challenges.
'We have never had a policy regarding Pakistani artistes working in India.' 'We welcome them with open arms and that remains the official policy of the Indian government, including the current dispensation.'
The frequent use of these assault rifles by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, according to experts, is a consequence of the US Army leaving behind arms and ammunition while pulling out from Afghanistan in 2021 and is a cause of concern due to the more lethal nature of the steel bullets used.
Five army personnel were killed and six injured on Monday when terrorists ambushed their vehicle in the remote Machedi area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district, officials said.
Air Vice Marshal R G K Kapoor, assistant chief of Air Staff, said, "We see it as a gesture in consonance with the Geneva Conventions."
For India, it is a symbol of will and a successful feat of arms.
