Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of India's Greatest Military Victory

Starfighter shot down over Jamnagar.
A Pakistani F-104 is shot down in an aircombat - for the first time ever

Dec 12,   Jamnagar : For the first time ever, a F-104 Starfighter was engaged in aircombat by an Indian Air Force MiG-21 and shot down in aircombat. This happened at Jamnagar today at 1402 Hrs.

Two MIG-2IFLs at the ORP were scrambled to set up a CAP at 10,000 feet over the ainield. Minutes earlier, Mobile Observation Posts along the Saurashtra sea coast had reported two bandits flying low, crossing the coast line in the qeneral direction of Jamnagar, with its vital air base Shortly, the airfield came under attack. The bandits (Now identified as F-104A Startighters) carried out a front gun attack on aircraft parked near the runway . The second F-104, spotted our MiG-21s first and immediately turnedoff and headed north.

A F-104 Starfighter of the PAF , similar to the one shot down today.

The lead F-104 continued at high speed along the runway and as he tried to exit, One of our MiG-21s flown by Flt Lt Bharat Bhushan Soni, dived down and positioned himself behind and above the F-104 allowing

Flt Lt  B B Soni in the cockpit of his MiG which has just returned, after shooting down the F-104 Starfighter

the air defence guns to continue firing. As the F-I04 cleared land, is was over the sea, continuing at heading 2400, maintaining very low level and high speed. Flt Lt Soni dropped his MIG-21   behind, to about 100 feet, at 1200 km/hr with full afterburner.

He launched an air-to-air missile (K- 13)  from the MIG-21 , but the F-104 took some evasive measures, firing flares to misguide the heat-seeking missile and the K-13 was deflected away from the intended target. Flt Lt Soni then selected his gun and closed in rapidly. but as he was closing in, the F- 104 suddenly pulled sharp to his right in a desperate manoeuvre, perhaps to throw off a second missile. The MIG-21 now rapidly closed distance and from 300 metres, fired three sharp bursts with the GSh-23 cannon at

the F-104 which was   immediately stricken and started wobbling as if out of control. The F-104 Pilot pulled up momentarily and it started to flame. The Pakistani pilot ejected almost immedately.

Flt Lt soni   goes fast past and pulled up,  to see the parachute has deployed, the F-104 pilot drifted slowly under a bright orange canopy into the Gulf of Kutch a shark infested sea.

Flt Lt Soni informed  base to dispatch a rescue launch to the exact spot and then returned back to base. However the Pakistani Pilot had not been found.

It was jubilation and cheering at the Jamnagar Base as Flt lt Soni touched down. waiting to greet him were members of his squadron, the 47th, 'Black Archers'. The detachment here is led by Wg Cdr H S Gill, and has other famous pilots like Sqn ldr Vinay Kapila, VrC , a Sabre Slayer from 1965.

The morale of the entire base had been sky high right from the day one the war had started, under the command of Gp Capt P M Wilson, VrC, the base had carried out several sucessful strikes over Masroor airbase. These included the raid on the first day that destroyed four to five B-57s of the PAF.

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