Aircraft Losses in the 47-48 Operations

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The fledgling Indian Air Force committed almost its entire fighter resources to the 1947-48 Kashmir Operations. Tempests of Nos 7, 8 and 10 Squadron took part in the fighting as well as the sole Transport Squadron, No.12 flying the venerable Dakota.

Inevitabily , there were losses during the operations – both combat causes as well as accidents. Sadly there is no single source for us to table all the losses in one place.

DETAILS OF AIRCRAFT LOSSES :

Date Aircraft Unit Name of the Pilot S.No Remarks Fate
30-Oct-47 Dakota 12 Flt Lt Clifford Joseph Mendoza MA965 Crashed at Pir Panjal 24 Killed. Killed
05-Nov-47 Spitfire AFSI Fg Offr PVS Ram . BO near Muree, Pakistan on flight to Srinagar. POW
25-Nov-47 Spitfire VIII AFSI Fg Offr H C Sahgal JF694 BL near Chamb after GF damage Safe
01-Dec-47 Harvard 7 Fg Offr Ulrich Anthony D’Cruz . SD Ground Fire. Pilot and Pax (PN Sharma) POW POW
10-Dec-47 Tempest 7 Sqn Ldr S B Noronha . Dam Ground fire. BO over Jammu BO
29-Jan-48 Tempest 10 Fg Offr Amit Singh Bakshi . Cr Landing at Jammu, ac caught fire and destroyed injured
15-Mar-48 Tempest 8 Fg Offr Donald Michael PR749 Dam Ground Fire . Cr on Landing at Jammu ALG Safe
16-Mar-48 Tempest 7 Fg Offr Balwant Singh PR597 SD Ground Fire attacking a Bridge. Killed
21-Mar-48 Dakota 12 Wg Cdr KL Bhatia VP914 hit by artillery fire after landing at Poonch Air Field Safe
22-Mar-48 Tempest 10 Flt Lt Sardindu Dasgupta PR660 Killed during an operational sortie in Kashmir Killed
22-Mar-48 Tempest 10 Plt Offr G B Cabral Overshot Poonch Runway crashed into river Safe
12-May-48 Tempest 8 Fg Offr Derek Austin O’ Brien PR601 Stuck throttle on Ldg at Jammu. Crashed Killed
08-Aug-48 Tempest 8 Flt Lt Aloysius William Barrette HA431 Crashed after TO from Jammu airfield Killed
12-Sep-48 Tempest 7 Plt Offr Donald George Baptiste HA411 SD AAA Kishenganga 1210 Hours 2 m from Tithwal Killed
03-Oct-48 Tempest 7 Fg Offr UG Wright HA363 SD AAA BO Pandu, made it back to our lines DNE BO
05-Nov-48 Tempest 10 Plt Offr Ivor Patrick Carrapiett HA416 Failed to return from Sortie near Chamb. Killed
??-???-48 Tempest 10 Plt Offr G B Cabral SD AA BO over Tithwal in No Mans land BO
Grand losses 17 Known Losses
AAA : Anti Aircraft Artillery
BO: Baled Out
TO: Take Off
Ldg : Landing
AFSI: Advanced Flying School (India)
POW: Prisoner of War
SD : Shot Down
Dam: Damaged

 

Sources:

An Incredible War : The RIAF in the Kashmir Operations – Air Marshal Bharat Kumar
Memorial Book – Sqn Ldr R T S Chhina.
Inside Occupied Kashmir – P N Sharma
Aircrew Logbooks – Gp Capt K L Bhatia, Wg Cdr D G Michael, Wg Cdr H C Sahgal

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