Param Vishist Seva Medal Awardee List for the MC


A total of 16 Awards are listed.
Param Vishist Seva Medal : 16 |
Param Vishist Seva Medal
AVM Harjinder Singh 1963 ENGUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 62 Announced 26 Jan 62
Details :

Born in 1909, Air Vice Marshal Harjinder Singh joined the Indian Air Force on its formation in 1932 as a technician. He served in the ranks till 1942 when he was granted a Commission in the Technical Branch. Since then, he has served in both Command and Staff appointments. He was appointed Officer Commanding, Base Repair Depot, in 1949 and Air Officer Commanding Maintenance Command, in 1955 when that Command was formed. The status of Maintenance Command was raised and A.V.M. Harjinder Singh was promoted in his present rank and appointed Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Maintenance Command.

In early 1960 it was decided to manufacture in the country a transport aircraft to replace Dakotas which were in short supply. After a decision by the Government to manufacture the AVRO-748 aircraft was taken, this task was given to A.V.M. Harjinder Singh who was asked to build the first aircraft as soon as possible and to set up a manufacturing line at the Base Repair Depot at Kanpur. This modern jet transport aircraft could only be manufactured with skilled and experienced personnel. An aircraft manufacturing depot was established alongside the Base Repair Depot at Kanpur under the Command of A.V.M. Harjinder Singh who was asked to undertake the manufacture of this aircraft. Jigs and tools were set up in the record time, mostly from available resources under the personal supervision of A.V.M. Harjinder Singh. Air Force personnel who have so far been accustomed exclusively to repair and overhaul work were trained in the factory methods and given the task of manufacture. With the assistance of a few specialists from England, the I.A.F. personnel numbering about 440 in all, built the first production model of the AVRO-748 in the aircraft manufacturing depot at Kanpur in a record time of 17 months when the production model was still being manufactured in the U.K. The Indian made AVRO-748 gave a flying display on 26th November 1961, when the Prime Minister blessed its maiden flight in Delhi.

The speed with which this aircraft was constructed by Air Force personnel with no previous manufacturing experience and with the resources which previously were mostly used for maintenance and repair and the quality of workmanship itself, which even the A.V. Roe of U.K. have acknowledged as something unique in aircraft industry, are a tribute to the tireless energy, skill and personal example of Air Vice Marshal Harjinder Singh. Air Vice Marshal Harjinder Singh has thus rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1962 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
AVM Om Prakash Mehra 1639 F(P)Unit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 68 Announced 26 Jan 68
Details :

Air Vice Marshall Om Prakash Mehra (1639) GD (P) was Air Officer Commandingin-Chief, Maintenance Command for a period of over three years with effect from 3rd October, 1963. On relinquishment of Command he was appointed Air Officerin-Charge Maintenance with effect from 1st February 1967, where he continues.

During his tenure as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Maintenance Command, this Air Officer was able to improve the efficiency of that Command; he showed commendable initiative, energy and untiring zeal in pursuing various projects and ensuring their completion on schedule. There were many shortages in that Command during the period of his command but despite those, he was able to increase the output of overhauled engines and aircraft from the Base Repair Depots. In the Equipment Depots, he was able to introduce new ideas and improve their functioning. As a result, the efficiency of the Maintenance Command as a whole improved considerably during his assignment.

Since taking over the duties of Air Officerin-Charge Maintenance, Air Vice Marshal Mehra has not spared himself in making up the shortages which exist on the Maintenance side. Due to various factors there have been shortages of spares. There have also been many other difficulties in adhering to the programme set before us for servicing aircraft. These difficulties notwithstanding, he has with his characteristics drive and initiative set into motion various actions which area now beginning to produce good results.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1968 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
AVM Harish Chandra Dewan 1598 F(P)Unit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 69 Announced 26 Jan 69
Details :

Air Vice Marshal Hari Chand Dewan was commissioned in the Indian Air Force in 1940. He saw active service in Burma during World War II. He has held various command and staff appointments with distinction. He attended the Flying Instructors Course in the United Kingdom in 1942 and the RAF Staff College Course, Andover, in 1948-49. He also attended the National Defence College Course in 1961-62. After holding the appointment of Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters, Western Air Command, he was posted as Director of Operations (Transport) at Air Headquarters where he had to handle a variety of difficult problems relating to air transport support. During the Chinese aggression in 1962, he planned the airlift programme involving not only the transport fleet of the Air Force but almost the entire fleet of the Indian Airlines and non-scheduled operators. He was also instrumental in arranging compilation of navigation data for airfields and the revision of aeronautical charts. During his tenure as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Central Air Command, he has made marked improvement in the operational potential of the fighting elements of the Command. As Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Maintenance Command, since 1st April 1968, he has shown a great deal of energy and initiative in meeting the maintenance and supply requirements of the operational commands.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1969 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Kanwar Iqbal Singh Chhabra 3831 F(P)Unit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 83 Announced 26 Jan 83
Details :

Air Marshal Kanwar Iqbal Singh Chhabra, AVSM, was commissioned in the Indian Force in April 1950. During his long service career, he had distinguished himself not only by professional competence but also by outstanding administrative ability. He is a graduate of Defence Services Staff College and also the National Defence College.

His command appointments include the command of a TAC during Indo-Pak conflict in December 1971, where he displayed exceptional skill in planning, supervision leadership. He achieved outstanding results by blunting the massive enemy attacks ChhambJaurian sector and contributed to the destruction of ground forces and elimination of enemy air opposition in the theatre.

In recent years, Air Marshal Chhabra, has held with distinction the important appointments of Senior Officer Administration at Central Air Command and Air Officer Commanding, HQ Maritime Air Operations where he achieved excellence in cooperation with the Navy and with connected civil agencies.

In his present appointment as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Maintenance Command which carries out overhaul and repair of aircraft, aero-engines, and ground equipment and specialist vehicles, Air Marshal through effective and efficient management of manpower and material resources brought about significant improvements in the output. This has directly contributed in improving serviceability and output of operational units.

Air Marshal Kanwar Iqbal Singh Chhabra has thus rendered distinguished service of an exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1983 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
AVM Madan Lal Sethi 4009 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 84 Announced 26 Jan 84
Details :

Air Vice Marshal Madan Lal Sethi (4009) Flying (Navigator) was commissioned in January, 1951. Having attended MR Bomber Courses in UK, he was one of the first two crews, which established the nucleus of the newly formed Jet Bomber Conversion Unit in India. He has over 3200 hours of accident free flying to his credit.

He was amongst the first batch of Air Force Personnel to be trained on Surface to Air Guided Weapons in USSR. Later as Officer Commanding of an SAGW operational Squadron, undeterred by hardships, his unit achieved the distinction of being the first unit to be operational.

He attained Directing Staff Grading in the Defence Services Staff College and subsequently served as a Directing Staff in this prestigious institution of the country. He is also a graduate of the National Defence College. In recognition of his experience and instructional capability of exceptionally high standard, he was selected as leader of the Training Team which established an Air Wing of the Staff College in a friendly foreign country.

He has held several Staff appointments in Commands/Air Headquarters. As Joint Director Navigation, he formulated categorization scheme for navigators and Air Traffic Controllers. He was instrumental in the formation of the integrated Area Control Center in J&K.

He was specially selected to Command the largest ground training establishment in the Air Force, where his performance was creditable. Later as Director (Military) in the Cabinet Secretariat he performed the functions related to the secretariat of the Chiefs of Staff Committee very efficiently. On promotion to the rank or Air Vice Marshal in April, 1981, he was appointed as Director of Intelligence, in the Air Force. His approach towards handling of extremely sensitive matters of highly classified nature, like Air Intelligence, Security and vigilance has been highly methodical and systematic. His direction in a field which has vital bearing in the functional efficiency of the service and demands quick and correct decisions has been of immense value in toning up the security and intelligence environment throughout the Air Force.

Air Vice Marshal Sethi, with his dynamic, pragmatic approach, determination and selfless devotion to service, has displayed brilliant and outstanding qualities of leadership, managerial skill and organizing abilities.

Air Vice Marshal Madan Lal Sethi, AVSM has thus rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1984 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Kuldip Singh Bhatia 4139 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 86 Announced 26 Jan 86
Details :

Air Marshal Kuldip Singh Bhatia was commissioned in the Technical Branch of the Indian Air Force in 1951. He has held a wide variety of Command and Staff assignments during his long and meritorious service in the Air Force and has distinguished himself by rare professional competence and outstanding administrative ability.

The important Staff/Command appointments held by him include that of Chief Engineering Officer of a major Fighter station. In recognition of his exceptional ability to combine technical with managerial competence, he was subsequently given Command of an important Base Repair Depot. As the BRD Commander he accomplished all tasks ahead of schedule.

On promotion to the rank of Air Marshal in February 1985, he took over as the Project Director of Radar and Communication Project Organisation. As a competent Technical Officer and a versatile field engineer, he has displayed a high degree of initiative in planning and installation of the trope, microwave and radar facilities. Thus he has been instrumental in significantly enhancing Air Defence Ground Environment capabilities of the IAF. His selfless devotion to duty has earned him the admiration and respect of the personnel who have had to perform field tasks even in remote and inaccessible mountainous terrain.

Air Marshal Kuldip Singh Bhatia AVSM & Bar has, rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1986 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Indrakanty Gopala Krishna 5398 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 92 Announced 26 Jan 92
Details :

Air Marshal Indrakanty Gopala Krishna was commissioned in the Indian Air Force on the 2nd May, 1957. During his long and distinguished career he has held a wide variety of command and staff appointments which include command of a major Base Repair Depot, Chief Engineer of two key fighter bases and Senior Maintenance Staff Officer of two commands. A graduate of the Defence Services Staff College, the Air Officer held a wide variety of staff appointments with ease and aplomb. He held the challenging appointments of Director Engineering 'B' in 1985 and Director Engineering 'A' in 1988 with distinction at Air Headquarters. The Air Officer brought about several innovative changes in these appointments which directly contributed to the operational preparedness of the IAF. An alumnus of the National Defence College, the Air Officer also had a very distinguished tenure as the Deputy Air Attaché at Paris. In this tenure, the technical reports of the Air Officer were always exceptionally helpful in evaluating spare parts requirements of French origin.

Having undergone Senior Defence Management Course, the Air Officer was first appointed as Senior Maintenance Staff Officer at HQ Western Air Command and later at Maintenance Command. While holding these key appointments, the Air Officer vigorously pursued the IAF's short and long term maintenance targets. On being appointed as AOCin-C Maintenance Command in April 1991 Air Marshal Krishna has brought to bear his wide-ranging field and staff experience upon providing fresh impetus to the on-going process of technological update of maintenance practices of the IAF.

Air Marshal Indrakanty Gopala Krishna, AVSM, VSM has, thus, rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1992 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Rajamani Ramamurthy 5614 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 95 Announced 26 Jan 95
Details :

Air Marshal Rajamani Ramamurthy was commissioned in the Aeronautical Engineering (Mechanical) branch on 01 March 1958. As Senior Technical Officer of a newly acquired fighter aircraft, he did a commendable job for which he was awarded VSM in 1971. Subsequently, he was appointed Chief of Aircraft at a major Base Repair Depot (BRD) and performed exceptionally well by increasing the production. He was specially selected as the technical member of Jaguar Project Team in UK. As Director of Jaguar and Mirage cell at Air HQ, the Air Officer performed creditably in ensuring timely setting up of support facilities for new aircraft at three AF Wings. He was later appointed as Air Officer Commanding of largest Repair and Overhaul Base, where due to his meticulous planning and foresight, he set up the new facilities and test beds for the overhauling of newly inducted aircraft and aeroengines. On promotion to the rank of Air Vice Marshal, he was appointed Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (ACAS) at Air HQ, responsible for supporting Indo-Western fleet. He was a member of the Ministry of Defence team which negotiated with Rolls Royce and obtained over Rs.80 crores in foreign exchange as damages.

On promotion to Air Marshal, the Air Officer was appointed Senior Maintenance Staff Officer of Maintenance Command (MC). He vigorously pursued the IAF's short and long term maintenance targets. On being appointed AOC-in-C, MC, in July 1993, Air Marshal R Ramamurthy has brought to bear his wide ranging field and staff experience to initiate fresh impetus to the on-going process of technological update of maintenance practices of the IAF.

Air Marshal Rajamani Ramamurthy, VSM has thus rendered distinguished service of most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1995 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Ramesh Chandra Bajpai 5967 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 97 Announced 26 Jan 97
Details :

Air Marshal R Bajpai, AVSM was commissioned in the Engineering Branch on 20 Jun 1960. He holds an MSc. Degree in Physics, M Tech in Radar Technology and was awarded Ph D by IIT Delhi in 1995 for his work on “Electronic Warfare'. He is an alumnus of the National Defence College. He was awarded AVSM in 1995.

He has held many prestigious field and staff appointments. As Senior Maintenance Staff Officer, HQ Maintenance Command, with his innovative approach and thrust on indigenisation, computerisation and rationalisation, he achieved phenomenal growth in every aspect of production and maintenance activity while effecting savings in manpower, money and material.

In his present appointment as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Maintenance Command, under his overall direction, supervision and control, he has ensured successful indigenous development of repair, life extension and overhaul technologies for aircraft, aggregates and other radar and communication equipment. The first AN-32 and MiG-23 BN aircraft overhauled with indigenous technology have already joined the operational fleets. Besides savings in crores of rupees in foreign exchange and downtime of the aircraft, he has provided the nation with much needed self reliance. These extraordinary achievements could be possible because of his sound professional background, administrative and managerial skill and total dedication.

Air Marshal R Bajpai, AVSM has thus rendered distinguished services of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1997 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Ghanshyam Gururani 6387 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 97 Announced 26 Jan 97
Details :

Air Marshal G Gururani, AVSM, VSM, was commissioned on 01 Dec 61 in the Engineering Branch. He has held the appointment of Chief Engineering Officer at AF Station Agra, Air Officer Commanding of a Base Repair Depot (BRD) at Chandigarh/Assistant Chief of Air Staff (ACAS), Air HQ and Senior Maintenance Staff Officer, HQ Maintenance Command (SMSO, HQ. MC). He was awarded VSM in 1983 and AVSM in 1993.

As ACAS, his dialogue with the original equipment manufacturers of Russia/CIS countries resulted in multifold improvement in supplies/repairs from Russia/CIS countries. During this tenure, he initiated life extension studies with the help of expertise available in the IAF, HAL and DRDO/CSIR labs. As a result life extension schedules were evolved and large scale withdrawals for overhaul in foreign countries were averted resulting in saving of large amount of foreign exchange.

As SMSO, HQ MC, he focused on self reliance and Indigenisation of spares by the repair depots. As Air Officer incharge Maintenance the Air Officer is continuing the thrust on self reliance. Servicing schedules of combat fleets are being revised to eliminate over servicing. Plans have been initiated for in-situ calibration by means of air transportable cabins fitted with calibration equipment. The thrust on procurement of maintenance supplies from original equipment manufacturers is continuing and the results are evident in the form of all round improvement in serviceability. A programme has been initiated to revise the logistics procedures and practices to bring them in line with present realities.

Air Marshal G Gururani, AVSM, VSM has thus rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1997 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Shanti Swaroop Gupta 6805 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 99 Announced 26 Jan 99
Details :

Air Marshal Shanti Swaroop Gupta AVSM VSM took over as the Air Officer Commandingin-Chief of Maintenance Command on 01 Aug 97. Within a short span of time after taking over, with his dynamism and vision, he transformed the entire work culture of Maintenance Command. All the BRDs and Equipment Depots have been connected to Command HQ through modems. Exchange of information about the inventory, which runs into several lakhs, is now being done on computers. Similarly, the information on items which have been indigenised was compiled from various agencies and the Command now has records of more than 1.7 lakhs such items. Establishment of a huge data base and quick transfer of information has been of immense help in executive decision making. This resulted in reduction of inventory levels and a large inventory which was non-moving started moving. Effective utilisation of procurement powers in respect of decentralised ranges consisting of HPT32, Kiran, Dornier aircraft, Cheetah/Chetak helicopters, Clothing and MT, has resulted in reduction of stock holdings and cash out flows annually, besides ensuring high level of availability of items.

A cell was formed at HQ Maintenance Command for monitoring and reducing the outstanding AOGs. This Cell has made very significant achievements, as the complete procedures for meeting the AOG demands were revised and streamlined. A regular feed back is now given to operational commands on the status of their outstanding demands. Concept of Base Repair Depot acting as Mother Depot has been implemented in letter and spirit.

A number of studies were carried out under the guidance of Air Mshl Gupta which have resulted in savings amounting to millions of dollars which otherwise would have had to be paid to the foreign vendors. These include studies on life extension of AN-32 and MiG-29 aircraft indigenously.

Since import of spares from abroad is becoming costlier and also in some cases these items were not available, he launched a major drive for indigenization of spares. This programme included holding of seminars and exhibitions with the help of Confederation of Indian Industries to encourage the entrepreneurs to meet the requirements of the Indian Air Force indigenously. He also undertook programmes for modernization of infrastructure at the BRDs, so that many of the sample spares required could be manufactured at the Depots. As a result of these measures more than one thousand items our of approximately 2000 required for overhaul of bare airframe of MiG-29 aircraft have been indigenized.

Air Marshal Shanti Swaroop Gupta AVSM VSM has thus rendered distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 1999 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Dinesh Chandra Nigam 7938 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 03 Announced 26 Jan 03
Details :

Air Marshal Dinesh Chandra Nigam AVSM VSM (7938) AE (L) was commissioned on 07 Oct 63 in IAF and is presently holding the appointment of SMSO at HQ Maintenance Command, IAF. During his career in IAF, he has held various important field and staff appointments like CEO of a fighter base, Chief Production Officer of BRD, DG RCPO, JDEW and GC IMMOLS, all with distinction. From the outset, Air Marshal Nigam has been regarded as an officer with vision and determination and is considered amongst the pioneers in the field of electronic warfare and information technology. As GC IMMOLS & ACAS (IT) at Air HQ, he ushered in the era of distributed data processing and satellite communication wide area network, which have provided significant impetus to computerisation.

Air Mshl Nigam took over as SMSO Maintenance Command on 01 Aug 2000 and immediately gave a massive thrust to the indigenisation of overhaul spares, life extension studies and modernisation of BRDs. By his sustained encouragement, BRDs have achieved almost 90% indigenisation of mandatory overhaul spares. On life extension studies, he mustered the support of a number of competent Government agencies like JGCAR, CEMILAC, HAL and DRDO laboratories. By associating them with BRDs, a number of life extension studies on aircraft and aeroengines could be completed at a fraction of the cost demanded by OEMs. With his penchant for futuristic planning, Air Marshal Nigam has initiated a number of steps towards modernisation of repair depots to bring them at par with international standards. Under his guidance, all the repair depots have already obtained ISO 9002 certification.

Air Mshl Nigam also has an in-depth knowledge and analytical mind to manage techno-logistics issues. With his sharp vision, he has embarked upon the task of liquidation of non-moving stores. He took up this challenge and issued various policies/orders on rationalisation of stores and purification of data. This exercise has started bearing fruits and a large number of non-moving lines have been converted to moving ones

Air Marshal Dinesh Chandra Nigam AVSM VSM has thus rendered distinguished service of an exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 2003 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Kirti Shekhar Chaturvedi 12100 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 07 Announced 26 Jan 07
Details :

Air Marshal Kirti Shekhar Chaturvedl VSM (12100) AE (L) was commissioned on 1969 in the AE Branch of IAF. In his distinguished 37 years of service, he has served in fighter squadrons, overhaul lines of fighter and transport aircraft, commanded Base Repair Depot of front line transport aircraft and also Radar/Communication Repair Depot. He has successfully and effectively held challenging appointments of Senior Maintenance Staff Officer and also Air Officer-in-Charge Maintenance. For his distinguished service he was awarded Vishisht Seva Medal in 1986 while serving in a front line fighter squadron.

He took over as AOC-in-C Maintenance Command on 16 May 2005 Immediately after taking over the command, he reviewed the availability of operational assets at operating units vis-à-vis maintenance support being provided by Base Repair Depots, Equipment Depots and also HAL. While performance of support units within its specified task appeared to be normal, results were not commensurate to achieve desired status of operational units. With his in-depth knowledge of production at BRDs, HAL and provisioning procedure at various levels, he applied conceived measure towards formulation of production task of BRDs and provisioning norms. These measures have started showing results as the production in one of the BRD, has surpassed unit demands and no demand is outstanding. The similar status is expected to be achieved by other BRDs and HAL due to reorientation of tasks.

Indigenisation of spares was another area where additional thrust was given by the officer, including new inductions In the Air Force. These measures will assure supply of critical spares to operations units in keeping high serviceability. The task of modernisation of BRDs, which was pending for a long, has been reviewed by him with more practicable and implementable scheme, which has gained momentum. Modernisation of warehousing in Air Force has been lacking. The officer with his dynamic leadership has initiated various corrective measures in this direction too. All Equipment Depots have been provided with modern packaging equipment, which is capable of packing sophisticated Air Craft spares at much lower cost, both to packaging and transportation. For better utilisation of warehousing space, a computer based “Carousel System" has been introduced in one of the Depot on experimental basis which will lead to saving of precious space as well as man power required to handle large inventories.

Air Marshal Kirti Shekhar Chaturvedl VSM has thus rendered distinguished service of most exception order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 2007 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Jayant Satchidanand Apte 11900 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 08 Announced 26 Jan 08
Details :

Air Marshal Jayant Satchidanand Apte AVSM (11900) AE (L) was commissioned in the AE (L) branch on 30 Dec 68. He has held important appointments, such as Chief Engg Officer (CEO) of a fighter base, Chief of Planning & Production of Systems Base Repair Depot (BRD), CO of ADGES Training Institute, Command Engg Officer at Western Air Command (WAC) and Command Signals Officer [CSO (Air)] at Eastern Air Command, Air Officer Commanding, AF Stn Kanpur, ACAS (Eng A) at Air HQ and SMSO at Maintenance Command (MC). He is an alumnus of DSSC. For his distinguished service of exceptional order he was awarded AVSM in 2004.

As CEO, his station was adjudged the best in maintenance for two years. While at WAC, he provided directions to bases, operating different types of weapon systems and successfully coordinated maintenance requirements of all operations including three Trishul Exercises. As CSO (Air), he standardised installation of electronic ex-changes and communication systems for enhanced operational availability. At AF Stn, Kanpur, he achieved enhanced production of aircraft and aeroengines and also led revision of life teams for AN-32 airframes and Viper aeroengines, resulting in improved availability for operations. As ACAS (Eng A) at Air HQ, he initiated key strategic decisions of maintenance support and to improve availability of Russian aircraft, helicopters and aeroengines. Some of the major issues initiated which have long term effect are, enhanced life of thrust vector nozzle of Su-30, repair and maintenance facilities for Bison and Su-30 aggregates and long term aeroengine overhaul plan for MiG-29 and AN-32 with OEMs. At HQ MC as SMSO, he coordinated maintenance activities of BRDs resulting in timely completion of tasks. Under his guidance, indigenization stall at Aero India 2003 and 2007 drew considerable response from the private sector, which has contributed immensely in indigenisation of critical spares. He was instrumental in introducing measures to improve the Average Service Life of components, concept of identifying and keeping Non-Performing Assets to a minimum, initiating the use of IT in managing assets in the form of Monitoring Life of MiG 29 and Su 30 MKI Aggregates and AOG management software. A sustained drive to reduce components classified as 'History Not Known' was initiated to reduce such components. His concept of indigenisation BRD will facilitate human, material and intellectual synergies in producing quality spares. He also initiated the concept of opportunity servicing for increasing fleet availability of IL 76 and Flight Refueling Aircraft.

He took over as AOC-in-C, MC on 02 Apr 07 and extended his philosophy of optimisation to Logistic and Administrative areas. His inputs for improving the effectiveness of IMMOLS (Integrated Materials Management On-Line System) will lead to an analytical and problem solving approach for asset management, thereby discarding non-productive activities like maintaining Floor Level Consumption Records. His drive towards tracking assets lying at HAL since long, have lead to recovery of over Rs 30 Crores in last one year and will improve aggregates availability. His passion for a less paper office and increased use of IT has resulted in improved productivity and efficiency of maintenance.

Air Marshal Jayant Satchidanand Apte AVSM has thus rendered distinguished service of most exceptional order.

Reference: Gazette of India Notification Dated : 26 Jan 2008 Number: 

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Gautam Nayyar 13024 AEMUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 09 Announced 26 Jan 09
Details :
Citation Not Available
Reference:  

Param Vishist Seva Medal
Air Marshal Pramod Vasant Athawale 13472 AELUnit : Maintenance Command  Award Date 26 Jan 10 Announced 26 Jan 10
Details :
Citation Not Available
Reference:  

The Awards Database presented here was made possible by the kind generosity of Air Marshal Bharat Kumar, author of Courage & Devotion to Duty : A Chronicle of IAF's Honours and Awards (1932-2008). Air Marshal Bharat Kumar had very graciously given permission to reproduce the citations from the book on this website.
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Note: All the data available here is publicly available in the Gazette of India, published by the Indian Government, or from public domain sources, press releases about Awards and Right-To-Information (RTI) Requests. Additionally data shared by veterans is added to the page with permission. No data with respect to serving officers below the rank of AVM is displayed. Information in Gazette of India and Award citations and photographs as released by the Indian Air Force are the only details displayed.