On the 25th September, 1984, Pilot Officer Radha Krishna Balabhadra was authorised to carry out his fourth sortie on MiG aircraft. During the course of the flight at an altitude of 10 Kms., the canopy perspex of the aircraft shattered and as a result raining glass and plastic fragments fell on him. The aircraft was left with only jagged remnants of the canopy on the left side. The tremendous air blast made it extremely difficult and hazardous for the Officer to even open his eyes and look ahead. Simultaneously he also experienced the accompanied shock of explosive decompression. Pilot Officer Balabhadra, with negligible experience on such aircraft exhibiting great alertness, confidence and coolness descended rapidly, selecting the Identification friend or foe on to emergency, and carried out a safe landing having catered for the extra speed and power required due to the damaged state of the aircraft.

Pilot Officer Radha Krishna Balabhadra thus displayed courage, confidence, presence of mind and a high sense of flying skill.

On 27th January, 1986 Flight Lieutenant Naseem Akhtar was detailed for an instructional story with a foreign trainee at a flying training base. Shortly after take off, while leaving circuit at 1300' above ground level, he experienced severe engine vibration. He took the correct action of throttling back the engine but in this process the engine flamed out. He then tried a hot re-light, while easing up, which provided to be of no avail. He promptly asked his pupil to eject keeping in view the low height. The pupil was hesitant and did not respond to instructions. At this stage Flight Lieutenant Naseem Akhtar would have been fully justified in ejecting himself, since any further delay would have jeopardized his own safety, in view of the low height. Completely disregarding the immediate danger to his own life he decided not to abandon his pupil into the hands of fate. He quickly went over the relight drill and the engine relit seconds before the impact with the ground. Opening full power he commenced a climb back towards base. However, shortly thereafter the engine flamed out again. Flt Lt Akhtar himself jettisoned the canopy and asked his pupil to eject. Not being sure of the pupil's reaction, he simultaneously attempted relight. This time, however the pupil ejected, but, even as he did so, the engine once again picked up, though at a very low height. He coolly assessed the situation and in spite of the high noise level in cock pit due to a jettisoned canopy and the unreliable engine, he landed the aircraft immediately and safely.

Flight Lieutenant Naseem Akhtar, at great peril to his own life, faced a totally unforeseen situation coolly and lived up to the loftiest ideals of human conflict. He not only saved the valuable life of his people but also brought back the aircraft safely.

Gp Capt Kalathi Payyan Sreekanth took over the Command of the Prestigious MiG Operational Flying Training Unit (MOFTU) in Nov 88, after having successfully commanded a frontline MiG-21 Sqn.

Under his dynamic leadership, the Unit has logged over 13000 sorties of which Gp Capt Sreekanth has personally flown nearly 700 accident-free sorties. Because of his meticulous planning and continuous prolonged involvement with the task in hand, the Unit has been able to pass out MOFTU courses in time, thereby contributing immensely to the overall Op potential of the Indian Air Force. The above noteworthy achievements were possible mainly due Gp Capt Sreekanth's personal example and his great enthusiasm for flying.

Under his professional guidance, the Unit, while successfully fulfilling its training commitments, also ensure Op continuity training of its staff pilots as a result the Unit is now fully geared to meet its wartime role with the same degree of confidence.

The Unit was adjudged as the 'Overall Champion' for two years. It also bagged F/G and Bombing trophies (1989) and the level R/P trophy (1990) besides number of individual events.

For his dynamic leadership, unflinching and exceptional devotion to duty, meticulous planning and very high professional standards, the President is pleased to award Vayu Seva Medal to Gp Capt KP Sreekanth.

Sqn Ldr Diwakar Dattatraya Kulkarni is on the posted strength of MiG Operational Flying Training Unit (MOFTU) since 22 Jun 87.

On 17 Jan 90, he was leading a four aircraft low level strike in a Type-77 aircraft. Approximately 75 Kilometers from base, he ordered a controlled scatter manoeuvre. For this, the formation engaged reheat and turned 30°, accelerating to 1000 IAS. At 1000 IAS Sqn Ldr Kulkarni switched off reheat and noticed his fire warning light on. He immediately gave a call and eased up in a climbing turn towards base. As his speed dropped to 500 IAS Sqn Ldr Kulkarni operated the fire extinguisher but the fire warning light continued to illuminate. He climbed to three kilometers to level out below cloud. In the climb, he also noticed his main hydraulic warning light coming on and pressure reading 50 Kg/cm2. As a precaution, he switched off his aileron booster and auto pilot and noticed that his JPT/rpm were normal indicating that the jet nozzle had closed. Approaching overhead base, at height, he lowered his undercarriage on emergency. The cone did not retract and remained at 95%. He attempted to retract the cone manually but was unsuccessful as the main hydraulic pressure was now 30 Kg/cm2. Sqn Ldr Kulakarni then correctly elected to carry out a descending circuit. He made a flapless approach, landed safely and switched off on landing.

For his cool professionalism and undaunted courage in the face of a serious and complex emergency, the President is pleased to award Vayu Seva Medal to Sqn Ldr Kulkarni.

Flight Lieutenant Chow Ongpee Maunglang was posted to MiG Operational Flying Training Unit with effect from 09 Sep 91 from a Type 75 Squadron. From his arrival, he applied himself with determination and zeal to promote flying in this unit. Despite his youthful years, he displayed a rare maturity of purpose and design.

On 03 Jun 92, while rejoining after a PI sortie, his canopy exploded in the air. Silvers of perspex cut his face and shattered his cheek-bones, causing excessive bleeding. Despite the pain and shock, the officer retained his presence of mind and initiated an ejection. Though the ejection was successful, the canopy minus the perspex bubble did not separate cleanly. Grievously injured and tumbling down through the air, Flt Lt Maunglang did not panic but decided to fight on. He operated the manual separation lever and decided to eject through the broken canopy perspex. He achieved this and then also opened manual D ring to ensure that his parachute would deploy. Unfortunately, exiting through the canopy, he was hit on the head by the solid frame, causing fatal injuries. The officer fought to the very last breath.

For his acts of courage and exceptional devotion to duty, the President is pleased to award Vayu Seva Medal (Posthumously) to Flt Lt Chow Ongpee Maunglang.

Group Captain Katre assumed Command of MiG Operational Flying Training Unit (MOFTU) on 09 November 1992. Immediately, he set about improving training standards by streamlining Operational, Maintenance and Administrate functions with emphasis on Flight Safety. MOFTU is a training institution with the time bound task of converting young fighter pilot onto front line jet aircraft. Despite the constraints of bad weather, the limited experience of the young fighter pilot trainees and the use of aging MiG-21 aircraft, Gp Capt Katre carried out his task with flair and determination. He not only set the finest example himself but was able to motivate his personnel to achieve the very highest standards of efficiency. Under his command, the unit flew over 14,000 sorties and completed all the tasks set before it. Gp Capt Katre himself flew 600 accident free sorties in addition to all this manifold duties and responsibilities. He thus exhibited exemplary qualities of leadership. On many occasions the officer was assigned additional responsibilities which he discharged with verve, alacrity and diligence.

For exceptional devotion to duty, the President is pleased to award 'Vayu Sena Medal' to Group Captain AG Katre.

Group Captain Nirdosh Vatsyayan Tyagi VSM (12765) Flying (Pilot) has been commanding MiG Operational Flying Training Unit since 19 Jun 95. He was commissioned on 12th Jun 71. While serving in Operational Conversion Unit, he performed creditably and was awarded VSM in 1987.

He has held various important command and staff appointments during his distinguished service career. He is a Category A-2 Qualified Flying Instructor. He has also served as a Directing Staff at Defence Service Staff College, Wellington. Earlier, he successfully commanded a MiG-21 BIS Squadron. This is his second tenure in command of a fighter unit.

MOFTU AF is a premier establishment, which is equivalent to two squadrons in terms of resources and task.

Group Captain NV Tyagi's performance in command of this unit for the last two years, has been noteworthy. At the time of his assuming command, the operational training task was behind schedule by over a month. Despite resource constraints and various setbacks, such as grounding of the fleet for a month, he ensured that all subsequent courses have passed out on schedule.

The unit has flown over 10,000 hours during the last two years under his stewardship. During this period, there were four accidents in the unit due to technical malfunction on the aircraft of old vintage and relative inexperience of the junior pilots. During such moments of crisis, he ensured that normalcy of operations was restored in the shortest possible time and the morale of the personnel was kept high. The unit has continued to perform well in all spheres of activity, including sports. Aircraft serviceability has been kept high and the unit has been very well administered.

For distinguished service of exceptional order, the President is pleased to award 'Vayu Sena Medal' to Group Captain N V Tyagi.

Wing Commander Rajiva Ranjan (18810) F (P) was commissioned in the Flying Branch on 13 Jun 87. He is a Qualified Flying Instructor, Fighter Combat Leader and a graduate of the DSSC. He has flown various variants of MiG21 and Mirage 2000 aircraft amassing a grand total of 3600 h of flying, which very few in his seniority bracket achieve. The officer has been commended by CAS in 1998 & 2003. He took over as CO of MOFTU 'A' on 06 Jun 05.

Wg Cdr Ranjan is a dynamic officer with exceptional professional knowledge and skills which he has achieved through hard work and perseverance. During his tenure as CO, he has led the unit from the front, individually flying more than 1050 sorties in less than two years. During the same period, the Sqn has flown a total of 6500 sorties, a feat very few fighter Sqns can be proud of. To achieve this feat, the Sqn maintained an average serviceability close to 85% on the ageing MiG-21 fleet and put a feather in its cap by achieving 100% serviceability for 26 days. He was also instrumental in carrying out the highest number of innovations by any Sqn in EAC. In addition to completing all the training tasks ahead of time, the Sqn also took part in a number of exercises at the Command level and played a vital role in the Jorhat and Guwahati fly pasts, as a part of the IAF awareness campaign. While achieving all this, the Sqn's track record of quality training and accident free flying stood testimony to his excellent supervision and management.

While according very high priority to quality training and operational preparedness of the Sqn, he never lost sight of the morale and welfare of his personnel. His concern, zeal and enthusiasm served as a great motivator to all air warriors. His regular involvement with all ranks also resulted in the Sqn reaching a very high degree of satisfaction level, in turn, leading to the Sqn being declared as the best fighter Sqn in EAC in 2005-06. Thus, this indefatigable and self-motivated officer has demonstrated an exceptional capacity to lead his men to better productivity under demanding and stressful conditions.

For exceptional devotion to duty, Hon'ble President is pleased to award 'Vayu Sena Medal' to Wing Commander Rajiva Ranjan.

Sqn Ldr Pradeep Kumar Chopra is on the posted strength of MiG Operational Flying Training Unit, Air Force with effect from 16 Apr 90. He is working in Tech Flight of a Wing since the time of his arrival.

During the current year, Sqn Ldr Chopra worked as O i/c Tech Flight supporting MOFTU and a Squadron engaged in MOF training. With his professional expertise and personal example of hard work amounting to almost 10-11 hrs every day, he provided the leadership and motivation to his men to meet the challenge of time-bound task.

During the year, Tech Flight produced 179 ac including an ac which flew after nearly 5 yrs & two others which flew after 2 yrs. Besides the routine task of scheduled inspections, rectifications and training of his personnel, Sqn Ldr Chopra also headed a project group formed at this Wing for development of a Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) for methodical rectification of every conceivable snag. The document of nearly 500 pages containing Fault Tree and Flow Charts of all trades has been printed and has received high praise.

For his sincerity, sustained hard work, initiative and professional competence, the President is pleased to award Vishisht Seva Medal to Sqn Ldr Pradeep Kumar Chopra.

Wg Cdr R Malhotra was commissioned on 09 Feb 74 in the fighter stream of Air Force. He is a Fighter Combat Leader and an Instrument Rating Instructor and Examiner. He has more than 3400 hours of accident-free flying to his credit. In Aug 90, he was posted to MiG Operational Flying Training Unit (MOFTU) and has been the Flight Commander since Jul 92.

MOFTU is a premier training institution of the IAF for the fighter stream. Wg Cdr Malhotra had been instrumental in setting high professional standards both in flying and ground training. Bad weather and limited experience of the fledgling fighter pilots were his major constraints. Through his single minded dedication and tireless hard work, he ensured that MOF training was completed on due date without compromising the quality of training, a singular and unique achievement by itself. His result oriented approach and personal involvement have greatly enhanced the operational capability of the unit.

For distinguished service of high order, the President is pleased to award Vishisht Seva Medal to Wg Cdr R Malhotra.

Squadron Leader Tarique Jamil Ahmed Khan (18072) F (P) was commissioned as a Fighter Pilot in the IAF in 1985. A highly accomplished flier with over 3000 hours of flying experience, he is a Fighter Combat Leader, Qualified Flying Instructor and a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington. He holds 'Three Stars' for accident free flying and 'Master Green' instrument rating. He has served as a flying instructor in a flying training establishment and as flight commander in a Fighter Squadron in earlier assignments.

Sqn Ldr Khan had been on the posted strength of MiG Operational Flying Training Unit (MOFTU), wef 29 April 2001. MOFTU is the largest fighter unit of IAF and it undertakes Stage-III fighter-flying training. In the absence of a Wing Commander due to service exigencies, Sqn Ldr Khan had officiated as the Squadron Commander of MOFTU 'Alpha' Squadron from his first day in the unit.

Despite being thrust into a job with a higher work content and increased responsibility, he had performed his duties with admirable efficiency. He flew extensively and worked for long hours with sincerity and dedication, among other things, to help pass out 164 and 165 Pilots' courses in time. He had worked beyond the call of duty on many occasions to meet all tasks. During this period, trainee and staff pilots in MOFTU had performed well in all professional spheres and for this Sqn Ldr Khan had a significant part to play.

Besides his primary job, he had performed all additional responsibilities in a befitting manner. His administrative ability was stood out and he had made significant contributions in many areas of activity in the unit including construction of the MOFTU museum.

For distinguished service of a high order, the Hon'ble President is pleased to award 'Vishisht Seva Medal' to Squadron Leader Tarique Jamil Ahmed Khan, posthumously.