Kalaikunda (West Midnapore): Remember Jackie Shroff in the film ‘Border’ and how his squadron of four Hunters based out of Jaisalmer decimated a large number of Pakistani tanks at Longewala during the 1971 Indo-Pak War?
This was no figment of imagination. This was in fact the Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) of the Indian Air Force, lovingly called the ‘Young Ones’.
Originally based at Kalaikunda and tasked with converting rookies from the flying academy into fighter pilots, the squadron had moved to Jaisalmer before the famous battle. It was at Longewala that OCU earned its battle honours and is the only IAF squadron to have scored such a victory over enemy armour. With MiG-21 FLs flying into the pages of history at Kalaikunda on Wednesday, OCU has ceased to exist for all practical purposes.
The OCU was set up in 1966, three years after MiG-21s joined IAF. Initially, the Young Ones flew Hunters and then switched to MiG-21s and continued with these till Wednesday. According to a senior IAF officer, OCU will now turn into a‘number plate’. This means it will be disbanded, with the instructors returning to their original squadrons.
According to the officer, the IAF’s policy has changed over the years. Even a few years ago, IAF didn’t possess any jet trainers and had to use combat aircraft to convert passouts into fighter pilots. For this purpose, the best pilots were drawn from various squadrons to be instructors at OCU.
“It was a huge jump. At the flying academy, we used trainers that had a top speed of about 300 miles per hour. At OCU, the take-off speed of MiG-21s was over 400 miles per hour. However, it is a scintillating experience flying MiG-21s after you master the controls,” said Flt Lt Nagarajan L, who belongs to the last batch to have undergone training at OCU.
Gp Capt V P Singh, commanding officer of OCU, is a qualified flying instructor and has flown with the Surya Kiran aerobatics team of IAF. It was a nostalgic moment for him on Wednesday but he believes the Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) will fill the gap between basic trainers and supersonic fighters.
“It’s a very nostalgic and proud moment to be part of OCU today. I remember my first sortie in a Mig-21 FL at Tezpur in 1994. It took a lot of effort to learn the ropes but it was a beautiful and safe aircraft,” Singh said.
Article Window
This was no figment of imagination. This was in fact the Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) of the Indian Air Force, lovingly called the ‘Young Ones’.
Originally based at Kalaikunda and tasked with converting rookies from the flying academy into fighter pilots, the squadron had moved to Jaisalmer before the famous battle. It was at Longewala that OCU earned its battle honours and is the only IAF squadron to have scored such a victory over enemy armour. With MiG-21 FLs flying into the pages of history at Kalaikunda on Wednesday, OCU has ceased to exist for all practical purposes.
The OCU was set up in 1966, three years after MiG-21s joined IAF. Initially, the Young Ones flew Hunters and then switched to MiG-21s and continued with these till Wednesday. According to a senior IAF officer, OCU will now turn into a‘number plate’. This means it will be disbanded, with the instructors returning to their original squadrons.
According to the officer, the IAF’s policy has changed over the years. Even a few years ago, IAF didn’t possess any jet trainers and had to use combat aircraft to convert passouts into fighter pilots. For this purpose, the best pilots were drawn from various squadrons to be instructors at OCU.
“It was a huge jump. At the flying academy, we used trainers that had a top speed of about 300 miles per hour. At OCU, the take-off speed of MiG-21s was over 400 miles per hour. However, it is a scintillating experience flying MiG-21s after you master the controls,” said Flt Lt Nagarajan L, who belongs to the last batch to have undergone training at OCU.
Gp Capt V P Singh, commanding officer of OCU, is a qualified flying instructor and has flown with the Surya Kiran aerobatics team of IAF. It was a nostalgic moment for him on Wednesday but he believes the Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) will fill the gap between basic trainers and supersonic fighters.
“It’s a very nostalgic and proud moment to be part of OCU today. I remember my first sortie in a Mig-21 FL at Tezpur in 1994. It took a lot of effort to learn the ropes but it was a beautiful and safe aircraft,” Singh said.
Article Window
