| Details : | Wing Commander Ashish Srivastava (22523) was commissioned in the Indian Air Force as a pilot in the flying branch on 21 Jun 93. The officer is a Cat 'Pi Qualified Flying Instructor and an Experimental Test Pilot. He has over 4700 hours of accident free flying on 13 different aircraft and has flown 2700 hours on all the version of the Jaguar aircraft. Wg Cdr A Srivastava was the Commanding Officer of a premier maritime strike Jaguar squadron from 24 May 10 to 18 Mar 12. As Commanding Officer, Wg Cdr A Srivastava with his professionalism and perseverance ensured that all the pilots in the squadron were able to achieve operational role qualifications in record time. In a short time frame of six months he ensured that the maritime dark night qualification in the squadron was enhanced from two to eight. The maritime !asking of the squadron has been done exceptionally well, wherein all the operational requirements were met both qualitatively and quantitatively. During his tenure the squadron planned and conducted International Level exercise 'Eastern Bridge-ll' with Royal Air Force of Oman at Jamnagar and performed exceedingly well. Under his able guidance the squadron did 21 exercises and 4300 hours of quality flying with a clean Aerospace Safety Record. For the operational preparedness of the squadron and the effective achievement of given task in most professional manner, the squadron was adjudged the Best Fighter Squadron of South Western Air Command for 2010. With the same professional vision, the squadron also won the coveted inter squadron Gunnery Meet, 'Ex Eklavya 2010' winning four out of eight events and he personally led two events. The all excellence of the squadron under his command was endorsed by Directorate of Air Staff Inspection wherein the squadron was assessed as 'Average Plus' in all the attributes of Operations, Maintenance and Administration. He also planned and executed the first ever Laser Guided Bomb (LGB) release on the maritime target by W ai/craft both in 2010 and 2011. The squadron under his guidance released 14 LGBs and all on targets. Under his command, the squadron also planned and executed the nonstop direct ferry of six fighters from Carnicobar to Jamnagar. On the maintenance side, he has used his expertise as a test pilot to study complex snags and suggest methods for effective technical management. This resulted in enhanced serviceability of the aircraft, Fire Control Radar and other operational system. With his all-round leadership, foresight, professional planning and positive attitude, he was able to provide a new purpose and direction to the air warriors in the squadron, who were motivated to achieve higher standards all the time. On the administration front also, he provided healthy and user-friendly environment to all the air warriors under his command and upgraded the squadron infrastructure as one of the best in the IAF.A disciplined officer who in unmindful of his personal comforts, he willingly undertakes prolonged hours of work and has been instrumental in bringing about professionalism amongst his squadron and his vision has made the squadron an epitome of hard work and harmony. The overall command and control exercised by his has produced a cohesive and professional squadron. For exceptional devotion to duty, Hon'ble President is pleased to award Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty) to Wing Commander Ashish Srivastava. |
