The battle for Meghna was a heli-borne operation east of Dacca that arguably shortened the 1971 conflict by a matter of days, and hundreds of lives. Major Chandrakant Singh writes about the battle.

Review by Brig D S Sarao

A tribute to Zoru Bakshi by Brigadier Rattan Kaul. Indian Army Lost a Gallant Solider On 24th May 2018. Zoru as he was called by his seniors and colleagues, we younger generation of the Regiment 5th Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) used to quietly also refer to him as Zoru, but otherwise also as General Zoru Bakshi, completed a page of Braves of Indian Army. If you asked him to what Regiment he belonged, before 1980, he would say SECOND FIVE; a diehard Second Fiver (Second Battalion the Fifth Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force) till he was elected as Colonel of the Regiment in 1980.

A Sailor's Story, by Vice Admiral N.Krishnan. Edited by: Arjun Krishnan - Book Review by K. Chandni

INAS 311 was commissioned by the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral Nirmal Verma on 12th May 2009 at INS Dega in Vishakapatnam.

INAS 311, commanded by Commander Sanjay Nandan, operates the Dornier 228 aircraft.

The Talwar class has its origins in the Severnoye (Northern) Design Bureau that developed intothe Project 1135.6 vessel using an earlier Project 1135.1 design. This back to the early 1980s. The extensive scope of redesign and re-engineering for these vessels has realised a multipurpose surface combatant of about 4,000 ton displacement (this increase being attributed to additional weapon systems and the replacement of light alloys with steel), tailored to meet the Indian Navy's specific mission and performance requirements.

 The C-47 is a reliable work-horse that served for nearly four decades in the Indian Air Force's service.  Over 200 examples served in the IAF across the length and breadth of the country. It saw its fair share of accidents and contributed to quite a few anxious moments - in this case, when an engine failed right after take off - as narrated by then Flt Lt (later Air Cmde) Arun Karandikar, serving with 43 Squadron at Jorhat. 

The Nawanagar Sword of Honour was a gem-encrusted invaluable sword that was awarded to the newly commissioned Pilot Officers who stood first in their course at the Air Force Academy. The sword was replaced by the Chief of Air Staff Sword of Honour in the 1990s and it disappeared in the sands of time... till one diligent commandant of the Air Force Academy decided to track it down..

The HAL HPT-32 Deepak had a chequered career in the Indian Air Force - Introduced in the late 80s, it served for about two decades in the IAF, being used for the ab-initio flying training of IAF Cadets. Over the course of its career, more than 21 were lost in accidents.  Only two known incidents involved pilots successfully baling out - thus earning themselves membership in the Caterpillar Club.  The first such baleout was done by Flight Cadet M Sabharwal - later Gp Capt, 22122 F(P) . This is his account, first published in Flight Safety Magazine.