Touch the Sky With Glory
“JAL, THAL , VAYU“ – Three armed forces of Indian Armed Forces, where VAYU (wind) represents Indian Airforce which stands at 04th Rank at world Level. The history of Indian Airforce(IAF) is so versatile that one would get mesmerised after reading it. There are various sources available over the internet, even the official website of IAF (https://indianairforce.nic.in/ ) has plethora of information available for the same. But here in this article you will get to read the gist of its history and at the end you will realize the worth of time spent on reading this.
The Indian Airforce (IAF) has been known for its valour since II World War. It was established on 08th October 1932 as Auxiliary Airforce by the British Empire. The “Royal” prefix was given during the world war to Indian aviation service as a symbol of honour. Post independence it was Royal Indian Air Force till the formation of Constitution of India in 1950. The prefix Royal was removed and since then we have known it as Indian Air Force (IAF).
The first Squadron No. 1 was established in 1933. During World War the Royal Indian Airforce raged against Japanese Army to stop the infiltration in the Burma Region and did its first Air strike.
Our Air Force has been involved in various major Military Operations like Operation Cactus, Operation Meghdoot, Operation Vijay (Goa Annexation) , Op Safed Sagar(Kargil War), Op Pawan
Brief history of few is included here:
Operation Meghdoot 1984: It is one of the biggest achievements of our Indian Armed Forces to capture the highest battlefield Siachen post illegal acquisition of Pakistan Military. IAF airlifted Indian Army and airdrops using Helicopters such as Mi 17 , HAL Chetak , AN 32 transport aircraft to reach at the point in adverse weather conditions to defeat our enemy.
Bangladesh Liberation War 1971: After open declaration of War against Pakistan to liberate the East Pakistan , Indian Army, Navy, Airforce exerted pressure on Pakistan military with combined efforts. Around 12,000+ number of sorties were done by IAF for movement of troops, surveillance of Sea route to support Indian Navy through Bay of Bengal with closed air support. Airstrikes in West Pakistan to encounter their moves and achieved complete air superiority during the war.
Operation Safed Sagar (Kargil War 1999): The location known as Kargil (Tiger Hill) at LOC was captured by Pakistani which blocked the passage from Jammu to Srinagar as a point of intersection between both. The Operation Vijay by Indian Army and Op safed Sagar by Air Force helped us to win this War precedently by airlifted the troops, direct attack at enemy positions in remote locations.The scope was limited to LOC, yet with all the sorties, airstrikes the level of intrusion was reduced to an extent. Post the War the upgradation of the Air Force was expedited to meet unforeseen circumstances at battlefield.
With such an exceptional history, the IAF is still making all Indians proud by regular operations and Airstrikes such as the Balakot Strike post Phulwama bomb attack on Paramilitary forces on 14th Feb 2019. Indian Airforce has also been deployed during Natural disasters such as the Kedarnath flood, Kerala flood under Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Operations.
The Indian Airforce has lost many of its warriors during Wars and Various Operations. We all owe to our forces and will always have the respect in our heart. Thus we pay our homage to them. The Indian Air Force will keep safeguarding our aerial borders with all their heart.
