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VM Investiture 1974
Receiving the Vayu Sena Medal from Air Chief Marshal O P Mehra. The VM was awarded for his operational missions flown with No.222 Squadron during the 1971 War.
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Command of No.222 Squadron 1979-81
Commanding 222 Sqn. in 1979. Standing (L-R) Sqn Ldr Ajax Sandhu, Sqn Ldr Phatak, Fg Offr Naranayia, (RIP), Wg Cdr BS Raje, Fg Offr FP Varkey (RIP), Fg Offr Singh, Fg Offr Shankar (RIP), Flt Lt Chauhan, Sqn Ldr AK Singh. Sitti
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Sukhoi-7 landing at Ambala
Landing after a sortie at Ambala 222 Sqn . c1979.
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222 Squadron Gunnery Championship Team
Gunnery Championship team that won the trophy for 222 Squadron. (L-R) Phatak, Raje, Malhotra, Ajax Sandhu
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CAS Visit to 222 Squadron
Receiving the Overall Championship Trophy on behalf of 222 Sqn. from Air Chief Marshal Idris Latif. Standing in the background is Air Marshal Dilbagh Singh.
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Command Hand Over
Handing over the 222 Sqn to Wg Cdr Naqvi.
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Stn Cdr, AFS Bhuj
Gp Capt Raje as Station Commander Air Force Station, Bhuj. This was the last penultimate posting before retirement in 1987
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Group Captain B S Raje (1935-2007) - Part II
by Rakesh Raje
Continued from Part 1
B S Raje was the flight commander of No.222 Squadron when war broke out in 1971. He
flew eleven missions during the 1971 Indo-Pak war. In his first mission to Risalawala air
field, his formation was bounced by a MiG-19 patrol and his wingman was shot down. In
subsequent missions, he flew interdiction and close air support sorties in the Shakargarh
and Chamb sectors. For his participation and role in the 71 operations, he was awarded the
Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry) in January 1973.
In 1979, he took over command of the same squadron with which he served in the War, No.
222 Squadron at Ambala. During his tenure, the Squadron won the Gunnery Championship
trophy for the best overall performance.
Other appointments held by him during his service were :
1. Flt. Commander with 22 Sqn. on the Gnats at Kalaikunda.
2. As instructor to Iraq 1977-1979 to teach Iraqi pilots on the
L-29’s and L-39’s
3. Chief Operations Officer (COO) at SWAC, Jodhpur
4. Station Commander, A.F. Station, Bhuj
5. Group Commander of NCC ‘B’ Group at Bombay
He retired in 1987, and settled down in Pune. He passed away on the 20th August 2007,
after being in Coma for 5 months, due to a stroke attack.
During his time he flew the Prentice, Harvard, Vampire, Toofani, Mystere IVa, Hunters,
Gnat, Su-7 and also the Mig-21, clocking about 5000 Hrs of flying. He was genuinely fond
of flying and his favorite pass time was watching the Su-30 aerobatics from his home close
to A.F. Station, Lohegaon.
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