Vijay Smarak and Vijay Stambh at Jaisalmer AFS
Kapil Chandni
Jaisalmer is located nearly 250km from Jodhpur in a North Westerly direction.
It rose to fame in the 1971 War, when it was the staging airbase for the Hunters
that decimated a Pakistani Tank thrust at Longewala. At that time the airfield
was less than an year old, and had a fleet of four Hunter F56s and two Hunter
T66s operating. Today, its a major Air Base, home to 41 Wing, with a huge runway
and a network of shelters.
The Memorial
In the middle of the airfield is a small area marked as 'Vijay Stambh' (Victory
Pillar) Park. The small park is the Memorial area for the airfield and commemorates
the Battle of Longewala.
The centerpiece of the park is the Pillar with a falcon on top. Two display
boards give details of the Longewala battle and the map of the general area.
One of the display boards list all the officers who have been involved in the
Longewala battle. Apart from the 'Battle Scores' and important messages recieved
by the base at that time.
Vijay Smarak - The Golden Jubilee Stone.
On 7th Dec 1996, Thirteen war veterans who served with the Hunter OTU in the
1971 War made the trip to Jaisalmer to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the
Jaisalmer battle. The Vijay Smarak monument displays the names of the officers
who were present on that ocassion.
The Hunter
No memorial for longewala is complete without the presence of the aircraft
that won the battle - A Hawker Hunter (BA-237) is on display in the park area
- well maintained by the base team.
There was also a Pakistani Sherman Tank that was captured in this sector on
display near the Vijay Stambh. However sometime in the early 2001 or so, a visiting
senior officer saw the memorial and reportedly objected to an enemy trophy sharing
the space at teh War Memorial, following this the Sherman was moved away from
the memorial area to another area facing the runway.
Date: 07/09/2009
Owner: Webmaster
Size: 8 items
Longewala Information Board
Information on the Battle of Longewala - including the List of Gallantry Awards
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2225
Vijay Smarak
The Vijay Smarak commemorates the gathering of Longewala and OTU veterans from the 1971 war for the 25th Anniversary of the battle in 1996.
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2018
Vijay Smarak
The Vijay Smarak commemorates the gathering of Longewala and OTU veterans from the 1971 war for the 25th Anniversary of the battle in 1996.
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2050
The Vijay Stambh
The Vijay Stambh memorial for 41 Wing
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2155
Battle field Map
Map of the Longewala Area as displayed at the park
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2378
Keywords:
Hawker Hunter BA-257
Hawker Hunter BA-257 at the Vijay Stambh park in Jaisalmer. The aircraft is synoymous with the word Longewala. It was due to the efforts of Air Marshal Minhi Bawa that the aircraft was installed at the park.
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2276
Commemorative Plaque
Close up of the Plaque in front of the Hunter.
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2026
Hawker Hunter BA-257
Hawker Hunter BA-257 at the Vijay Stambh park in Jaisalmer
Date: 07/09/2009
Views: 2282
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