| Details : |  Wing Commander Vikas Sharma (20757) Flying (Pilot) was commissioned in the Flying Branch as a Fighter Pilot on 16 Jun 90. In his 20 years of service he has crossed several important milestones. He is a Pilot Attack Instructor who was awarded the Air Chief Marshal Dilbagh Singh trophy for standing first in the overall order of merit in the course. He is also a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College. He has handled various important operational assignments as that of Flight Commander of a MiG-29 squadron (Sqn) for two and a half years and Chief Operations Officer of a Fighter Wing. He has been awarded twice with the commendation by the AOC-in-C WAC. He is one of the very few pilots to achieve 1200 hours of accident free flying on the MiG-29 aircraft. Wg Cdr Sharma was appointed as the Commanding Officer of a frontline MiG-29 Sqn on 07 Apr 08. Under his command the Sqn has been able to achieve exceptional standards due to his ability to motivate the men under him as well as by his displaying a very high degree of professionalism through personal example. Within two months of his taking over command, the Sqn proceeded on a year long detachment to a new base. He ensured that the move was executed meticulously and the Sqn was operational in all aspects within two days of the deployment. He made focused and sustained efforts towards up gradation of the operational capability and achieved a 100% operational status for the aircrew in Apr 09. The Sqn maintained a very high degree of operational and rating status and executed all the assigned tasks with a high degree of work output. In Nov 09, the Sqn was awarded the Standard by the President of India. The Sqn had to deploy for this task within a fortnight of moving back to base after the long detachment. The Sqn performed all the activities associated with the event exceptionally and earned accolades from all senior serving and retired dignitaries for the quality of its work output, cohesiveness and team spirit. Through his close personal interaction and genuine concern for his subordinates, he ensured that their morale always remained very high, despite the frequent movements away from the base. In Dec 09, the Sqn commemorated its Golden Jubilee. By his meticulous planning and attention to detail, he ensured that the all the events were conducted in a befitting manner. The efforts put in by the Sqn personnel were highly appreciated by all the attending dignitaries. The Sqn was inspected by the Directorate of Air Staff Inspection team in Mar 10. Due to his dynamic leadership and vast experience, he guided his team to achieve remarkable results. The Sqn was adjudged as 'Average Plus' in all the facets and also earned appreciation from the inspecting team for its high operational standards. His concern, zeal and enthusiasm have been mainly responsible for the Sqn handling one major event after the other smilingly and also producing exceptional results in each one of them. He has more than justified the faith placed in him by his superiors by exhibiting exemplary competence, professionalism and dedication. For exceptional devotion to duty, Hon'ble President is pleased to award 'Vayu Sena Medal' to Wing Commander Vikas Sharma. |
