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No. 18 Squadron IAF

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No. 18 Squadron
Active
  • 15 April 1965 – 15 April 2016
  • 1 April 2020 – present
CountryIndia Republic of India
Branch Indian Air Force
RoleAir Defense
Ground attack
BaseNaliya Air Force Station
Nickname(s)Flying Bullets
Motto(s)Theevra aur Nirbhaya[1]
Fast and Fearless[1]
Decorations
Battle honoursIndo-Pakistan War of 1971
Commanders
Current
commander		Group Captain Dinesh Dhankhar[2]
Aircraft flown
FighterHAL Tejas

No. 18 Squadron (Flying Bullets), is an air-defence unit of the Indian Air Force, flying from Naliya Air Force Station. The squadron is equipped with indigenous HAL Tejas MK1 in FOC configuration .[3]

The squadron was resurrected on 1 April 2020, at Sulur, Tamil Nadu following which on 27 May 2020, the FOC variant of Tejas Mk 1 has been inducted into the squadron.[4][5]

History

[edit]

The squadron was formed on 15 April 1965, with five Folland Gnats and eleven pilots, it operated out of Srinagar AFS.[6] Although it existed during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965, it did not officially participate in the conflict. A few pilots from this squadron flew operations with 9 Squadron, and 2 Squadron. Squadron Leader K.L. Khanna, was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal during the war.[7]

The squadron first saw action during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, with the task of defending the Kashmir Valley. It operated out of AFS Srinagar, consisting of four aircraft, 17 officers and 72 men commanded by Wing Commander P Raina. On 4 December, it scrambled to intercept an approaching raid. The raid was never carried out, but the squadron kept flying Combat Air Patrols all day.[7]

It fought its first dogfight, on 6 December, where Flight Lt. Bopaya and Squadron Leader Pathania got on the tail of four Sabres, despite heavy anti-aircraft fire. Bopaya realised that both he and Pathania were tailing the same Sabre, so he broke off and chased another, though he failed to damage any. Pathania managed to damage one of the Sabres, but his gun jammed and he failed to shoot down the plane. The Sabres managed to damage the Srinagar runway, and the pair of fighters were forced to land. On the same day Flight Lt. B.S. Ghuman, and Flying Officer R.V. Padkhe escorted Vampires into Hajira and destroyed a Brigade HQ. Flight Lt. Naliyan and Flying Officer V.K. Sharma flew their squadron's first mission into enemy territory, in the Poonch sector, escorting Vampires on their bombing raids successfully.[7]

On 7 December, Bopaya and Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon escorted another raid into the Poonch sector, and strafed enemy positions after the Vampires had delivered their weapons. On the 8th, Raina and Ghuman escorted another raid into Kargil, and strafed enemy bunkers after the bombs were delivered.[7]

On 14 December, no patrols had taken place due to poor visibility. On seeing enemy Sabres in the sky, Ghuman and Sekhon were scrambled, without any Air Traffic Controller clearance. The Sabres successfully bombed the runway and turned back. Sekhon chased them and moved out of sight of Ghuman and the ground controllers. One Sabre was seen going out of control in the sky, but while Sekhon chased the second, a third Sabre shot him down. His parachute failed to deploy, and he was killed. He was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra.[7]

After the war, in February 1975, the Gnats were phased out, and replaced by HAL Ajeets. In May 1989, when the squadron was at Hindon, they were replaced with MiG 27s. Its former role of Air Defence was changed to Ground-attack.[7]

The squadron received the Presidential Standard Award in 2015.[8] The squadron was re-formed with the indigenous HAL Tejas on 27 May 2020.[9][4]

No. 18 Squadron (Flying Bullets), is the only unit in the Indian Air Force to have been awarded the esteemed Param Vir Chakra, the highest gallantry medal awarded during times of war.

Initially, the squadron was based at Sulur Air Force Station and was later moved to Naliya Air Force Station in Gujarat at an unspecified date.[10][11]

Aircraft

[edit]
Aircraft From To Air Base
Folland Gnat 15 April 1965 February 1975 Srinagar AFS[6]
HAL Ajeet February 1975 May 1989 Hindon AFS
MiG-27 ML May 1989 15 April 2016 Kalaikunda AFS[3]
HAL Tejas 27 May 2020 — Sulur AFS[4]
— Present Naliya AFS[10][11]
[edit]
Squadron 18 ceremony pics
  • IAF Chief ACM RKS Bhaduria handing over ceremonial key to SQ 18 CO Manish Tolani.
    IAF Chief ACM RKS Bhaduria handing over ceremonial key to SQ 18 CO Manish Tolani.
  • HAL Tejas (LA-5018) of Squadron 18 Flying Bullets doing air maneuver.
    HAL Tejas (LA-5018) of Squadron 18 Flying Bullets doing air maneuver.
  • HAL Tejas series production #18 fresh off the production line.
    HAL Tejas series production #18 fresh off the production line.
  • Men of the Squadron posing with one of their Folland Gnat fighter jets, a few months before the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 broke out. Colorized.
    Men of the Squadron posing with one of their Folland Gnat fighter jets, a few months before the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 broke out. Colorized.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Squadrons 18-33". IAF Unit Crests. Bharat Rakshak. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  2. ^ Anantha Krishnan M. "Big day for IAF, HAL as new Tejas Squadron takes off today". OnManorama. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  3. ^ a b "No. 18 Squadron numberplated". The Times of India. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  4. ^ a b c "IAF set to raise second LCA squadron in Sulur". The Hindustan Times. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Historic IAF Squadron Revived As 2nd LCA Tejas Unit". Livefist. 25 May 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Squadron of IAF's sole PVC recipient Nirmaljit Sekhon to take to the skies again". The Tribune. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "No 18 Squadron (Flying Bullets)". Squadrons of the Indian air Force. Official Website of the Indian Air Force. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  8. ^ "Squadron 18-22 honoured". Citations for Presidential Honour to IAF Squadrons. Press Information Bureau. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  9. ^ "PVC recipient Sekhon's squadron to fly again".
  10. ^ a b "Mohana becomes first woman Tejas fighter pilot". The Hans India. 19 September 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Who is Squadron leader Mohana Singh? The first woman fighter pilot joins 18 Flying Bullets". Times of India. 18 September 2024.
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