No. 18 Squadron IAF
No. 18 Squadron | |
---|---|
Active |
|
Country | Ground attack |
Base | Sulur Air Force Station |
Nickname(s) | Flying Bullets |
Motto(s) | Theevra aur Nirbhaya[1] Fast and Fearless[1] |
Decorations |
|
Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 | |
Commanders | |
Current commander | Group Captain Dinesh Dhankhar [2] |
Aircraft flown | |
Fighter | HAL Tejas |
No. 18 Squadron (Flying Bullets), is an air-defence unit of the Indian Air Force, flying from Sulur 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
The squadron was formed on 15 April 1965, with five
The squadron first saw action during the
It fought its first
On 7 December, Bopaya and
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
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.
Aircraft
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 | Till Date | Sulur AFS[4] |
Gallery
-
IAF ChiefRKS Bhaduriahanding over ceremonial key to SQ 18 CO Manish Tolani.
-
HAL Tejas (LA-5018) of Squadron 18 Flying Bullets doing air maneuver.
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HAL Tejas series production #18 fresh off the production line.
-
Men of the Squadron posing with one of theirIndo-Pakistani War of 1971broke out. Colorized.
References
- ^ a b "Squadrons 18-33". IAF Unit Crests. Bharat Rakshak. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
- ^ Anantha Krishnan M. "Big day for IAF, HAL as new Tejas Squadron takes off today". OnManorama. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ a b "No. 18 Squadron numberplated". Times Of India. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
- ^ a b c "IAF set to raise second LCA squadron in Sulur". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ "Historic IAF Squadron Revived As 2nd LCA Tejas Unit". Livefist. 25 May 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Squadron of IAF's sole PVC recipient Nirmaljit Sekhon to take to the skies again". The Tribune. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Squadron 18-22 honoured". Citations for Presidential Honour to IAF Squadrons. Press Information Bureau. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
- ^ "PVC recipient Sekhon's squadron to fly again".