|
HAL HF-24 Mk I Marut. An A&ATU (Aircraft and Armament Testing
Unit) pilot tests the first Marut handed over to the IAF- BD 829 in Mar 1964. The early
Maruts were characterized by the STR-9x VHF antenna on the nose. This painting has
particular significance to me as that pilot was my father. I was one year old. Oil on
canvas 3’X2’. ASTE collection. |
 |
Hawker Hunter 56. Fg Offr Adi Rustom Ghandhi of the No.7 Squadron,
'The Battle Axes' damages a PAF F-86 Sabre flown by Sqn Ldr Sarfaraz Rafiqui over the
Halwara Airfield. Moments earlier, both Ghandhi and his formation leader Fg Offr PS
'Pingo' Pingale were bounced by Rafiqui's formation. Ghandhi elected to stay in his
damaged Hunter and pursue the enemy fighter. |
 |
 Dassault
Mystere IVa. As the sun rises in the East, A Mystere IV A flown by Sqn Ldr AB "
Tubby" Devayya of the IAF's No 1 "Tigers" sqn turns away from home to give
battle to a PAF 9 Sqn F-104A Starfighter Flown by Flt Lt Amjad Hussein. Devayya was flying
as a standby and was trailing the main strike force due to unserviceabilities before take
off. Egressing alone from Sargodha he was bounced by Amjad Hussein who hit him with his
first Sidewinder. Severely damaged and knowing fully well that he had no fuel to engage,
Devayya engaged the starfighter in a scissoring 1 Vs 1. The outcome varies. the, anti
Starfighter, Pro Sabre pilots lobby in the PAF states that Devayya shot down the
Starfighter while Amjad states that the two collided causing Amjad to eject safely while
the Mystere and Devayya crashed. While Devayya's body was recovered and buried by the PAF
near the crash site, this fact was hidden by the PAF and never came to light untill the
publication of John Fricker's 'Battle for pakistan' in 1979. Amjad was again shot down in
a Starfighter, by Ack Ack during the 1971 war over Amritsar and taken POW. The details of
Devayya's impossibly heroic last stand came to light in 1979 and he was finally awarded a
posthumous MVC in 1988, a full 23 years after he battled alone against overwhelming odds.
|
 |
Hawker Hunter 56A. Flt lt ‘Kukki” Suresh of the
Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) attacks T-59s of Pakistan’s 22 Cav at Longewalla on
5 Dec 71. In a subsequent attack Kukki, distracted by a T-59 main gun shell aimed at him,
impacted the ground but recovered to base with a crushed jet pipe. In 3 days and with only
four aircraft, OCU single handedly routed the entire regiment claiming some 29 tanks and
scores of soft skinned vehicles. Oil on canvas 3’X2’. OCU museum collection
|
|
Hawker Hunter 56A Wg Cdr Cecil Parker CO, 20 Sqn pulls out of
his attack on the Attock oil refinery on 6 Dec 71. Operating at the Hunters max range the
ac carried only gun ammo and long range fuel tanks. The blaze so created acted as a
navigation aid to the rest of the IAF’s attacking ac who roamed the length and
breadth of Pakistan by day and by night for the rest of the war. Oil on canvas
3’X2’. Artists collection.
|
 |
HAL Ajeet. The prototype HAL Ajeet EI083 (Gnat Mk II) climbs
out over Bangalore in Aug 78. The Ajeet was the ‘ground attack’ variant of the
much acclaimed Gnat with a wet wing, new avionics and modified controls. Oil on canvas
3’X2’. ASTE collection.
|
 |
Hawker Hunter 56A Wg Cdr ‘Ben’ Brar, CO 20 Sqn
leads the ‘stand-by’ leader on a familiarization trip over Colombo, Sri lanka in
1983. 20 sqn became the IAF’s formation aerobatic team in 1981 with 12 Hunter
56As.The ac were painted in Oxford blue with white lightning bolts.
Water colour on card 2’X11/2’. Artists collection
|
|
Kiran MK II A Kiran MK II deploys its anti-spin chute during
inverted spinning trials in 1983. Oil on canvas 3’X2’. ASTE collection.
|
 |
Hawker Hunter 56A An ASTE pilot carries out trials on a R-60 AAM
equipped Hunter for operations from Leh during the initial phase of the Siachen conflict.
The Hunter was the only ac that could operate from that elevation at that time
(10,827’). A-918 was loaned from the ‘Thunderbolts’ for this trial. Water
colour on card, 2’X11/2’. Artists collection.
|
 |
Mig-21 FL. A Mig 21 FL (T-77) of OCU vaults over the
afternoon’s dissipating thunder heads typically seen over the Brahmaputra. Oil on
canvas 3’x2’. OCU museum collection.
|
