On the 12th October, 1979, Flight Lieutenant Chanrashekhar Jayawant was ferrying as Ajeet aircraft from Hindon to Srinagar. While he was at some distance from the airfield at an altitude of 1400 meters, he experienced a sudden loss of power which soon resulted in a flame out. Despite this emergency, he maintained his composure and took stock of the situation in a professional manner. When his two attempts to relight the engine failed and he realized that the usual low key entry on to the runway was not possible because of the inadequate height of his dead engine aircraft, he decided to land against traffic. He informed the Air Traffic Control to keep the run way clear for his proposed landing and successfully accomplished the first deadstick landing on a Ajeet, without any damage to the Aircraft.
In this action, Flight Lieutenant Chandrashekhar Jayawant displayed courage, presence of mind and professional skill of a high order.
|