Wing Commander Awadesh Kumar Bharti (18781) F (P) was commissioned in the Flying Branch on 13 Jun 87. In 20 years of distinguished service, the officer has crossed several important milestones. He is a Fighter Combat Leader and a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College. He was the Flight Commander of a Sukhoi-30MK Sqn. He has also held a staff appointment as the Joint Director of Air Defence operations at Air HQ. The officer has been awarded 'Three Stars' for accident free flying (superlative performance). He was also commended by the CAS in 1997 for dedication to duty. Wg Cdr AK Bharti was appointed as the CO of a Sukhoi-30 MKI Sqn on 16 Aug 05. The Sukhoi-30 MKI Phase III aircraft have been inducted recently and he had the onerous responsibility of making the various weapon systems operational and evolving tactics for the same. In spite of numerous teething troubles that are bound to engulf a nascent fleet, by his effective leadership and innovative approach, he made the weapon systems operational in the shortest possible time frame. Tactics were also evolved to extract the maximum from this very versatile aircraft. Under his leadership, the Sqn successfully participated in an Air Force level exercise called Gagan Shakti and helped prove the evolving concept of 'Air Dominance Force'. The Sqn also won accolades after exercising with the Royal Air Force of United Kingdom during ExerciseIndradhanush 2006 and, with the French Air Force during Exercise-Garuda 2007. The Sqn was inspected by the Directorate of Air Staff Inspection in Nov 06. The Sqn was assessed in a multitude of missions that the aircraft was capable of. In many of the crucial missions, the Sqn was assessed 'Above Average' and also 'Exceptional'. The Sqn achieved an overall grading of 'Average Plus'. All this was possible because of Wg Cdr Bharati's very high standards of professionalism and his able and dynamic leadership. For exceptional devotion to duty, Hon'ble President is pleased to award 'Vayu Sena Medal' to Wing Commander Awadesh Kumar Bharti. |