Arjan Singh, Marshal of Indian Air Force, passes away

www.mangaloretoday.com

New Delhi, Sep 17, 2017: Marshal of the Indian Air Force (IAF) Arjan Singh (98) passed away on September 16, Saturday evening. He was 98.  Singh was admitted to the Army Hospital (R&R), New Delhi, following a cardiac arrest in a critical condition, yesterday.

Singh was the chief of Indian Air Force from 1964 to 1969. He was the first Chief of Air Staff to lead the IAF to war against Pakistan in 1965. He retired from the IAF in 1969 but was conferred the five-star rank of Marshal in 2002 in recognition of his services to the nation.

He was the only IAF officer of five-star rank – equivalent to Field Marshal of the army. The Air Force Station, Panagarh, was renamed after Singh last year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and IAF chief Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa paid a visit to the hospital as he remained critical. They also met Singh’s family.

Singh was born in a military family on April 15, 1919, at Lyalpur in undivided Punjab (now in Faisalabad of Pakistan). His great- grandfather, grandfather and father served in the British Army.

Singh entered the Royal Air Force College Cranwell at Lincolnshire in England in 1938 and was commissioned as a pilot officer in December 1939.

He led the No. 1 Squadron of the IAF into combat during the Arakan Campaign in 1944. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross the same year.

In September 1965, when Pakistan launched an offensive against India, targeting Akhnur in Jammu and Kashmir, Singh was summoned into the defence minister’s office and was requested to provide air support to the army.

When asked how quickly the IAF will be ready for operations, he replied with his characteristic nonchalance: “In an hour”.

The IAF indeed struck the Pakistani offensive in an hour. He led the IAF through the war showing unparalleled leadership.

Singh, who initially led the IAF as Chief of Air Staff, was awarded the Padma Vibhushan for his leadership during the 1965 war against Pakistan.

The post of IAF chief was upgraded to the Air Chief Marshal. Singh became the first Air Chief Marshal and remained a flyer till the end of his tenure in the IAF, visiting forward squadrons and units and flying with them.

Arjan Singh was and remains a source of inspiration to generations of Indians. He retired in July 1969.

After his retirement from the IAF, he served as India’s ambassador to Switzerland in the 1970s. He also served as the Lt Governor of Delhi from December 1989 to December 1990.