Wg Cdr Norman Anil Kumar Browne was commissioned on 24 Jun 72 and has been in command of a Squadron, equipped with the frontline Deep Penetration Strike Aircraft since Dec 90. Wg Cdr Browne is a graduate of Staff College in USA. He has over 3000 hours of accident-free flying.

Immediately after assuming command of the Squadron, he set about enhancing the operational preparedness and potential of the unit. Wg Cdr Browne's personal contribution in development of tactics has been very significant. Recommendations made by him and his team have been accepted by Air HQ and these form a part of the standard tactics for strike squadrons.

During a low level night strike mission in a Jaguar aircraft, he experienced serious controls malfunction followed by controls restriction in the rudders. As worthy professional, he remained cool and analyzed the emergency correctly. He nursed the stricken aircraft to a safe altitude. He had to fly the aircraft extremely close to the limits of the performance envelope. He displayed extraordinary qualities of airmanship in landing the crippled aircraft thus saving invaluable aircraft.

For exceptional devotion to duty, the President is pleased to award Vayu Sena Medal to Wg Cdr NAK Browne.

Air Commodore Norman Anil Kumar Browne VM (13129) F (P) was commissioned in the IAF on 24 Jul 72. He has held several important command and staff appointments that include Directing Staff at Tactical Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE), command of a Jaguar fighter squadron, Defence Attaché at Embassy of India at Tel Aviv, Israel and Chief Operations Officer of a premium fighter base. He is a graduate of the Air Command and Staff College, USA and also served as a Directing Staff at Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington. He was awarded VM in 1994 for distinguished service.

Air Cmde Browne was entrusted with the task of establishing for the first time the Indian Defence Wing at Tel Aviv, Israel in 1997. As the Defence Attaché, he carried out excellent pioneering work and laid the foundation for coordinating various projects of the three services, in addition to the requirements of Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and MoD. His close liaison with the Israeli MoD and their Defence forces proved highly beneficial during Kargil crisis. His detailed planning and close involvement saw the induction of a number of new avionics and weapon systems, which are now operational with the three Services.

Air Cmde Browne was appointed Air Officer Commanding Air Force Station Pune on 29 Jun 2001. On taking over the command he faced the challenges of improving SU-30 aircraft serviceability in the face of uncertainty of availability of spares from Russia. With thorough planning and personal involvement the Serviceability State has improved to 85%. This afforded an optimum deployment of aircraft in support of Op 'Parakaram'. He has meticulously guided the squadron in evolving tactics and employment philosophy of the ac. He has also laid the foundation and planned the build up of infrastructure for the induction of the new variant SU-30 MK I. The officer has inspired confidence amongst all his station personnel. He has been innovative and cost conscious. Under his able guidance, the station has achieved high standards, which showed during the visit of Director of Air Staff Inspection (DASI) in Dec 01 when the station was assessed as 'Average Plus' in all fields and earned 'Above Average' grading in flight safety.

Air Commodore Norman Anil Kumar Browne VM has, thus, rendered distinguished service of an exceptional order.