Narendra (IAF officer)
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948 |
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Air Commodore Narendra was an officer of the Indian Air Force (IAF). One of the pioneers of the IAF, he last served as the Air Officer-in-charge Technical and Equipment Services at Air HQ. He was killed when his Dakota aircraft crashed near Gülnar in Southern Turkey. At the time of his death, he was the third senior-most officer of the IAF, after Air Marshals Subroto Mukerjee and Aspy Engineer.
Early life and education
Narendra was born in
Military career
Narendra was commissioned on 16 December 1933 as a
In September 1941, Narendra was posted to the Initial Training Centre at
In October 1943, Narendra became the Air Force representative on the Directorate of Selection of Personnel. On 12 May 1944, he was appointed the Officer-in-charge flying training and frontier air operations at RAF Base Kohat. He assumed command of the base later that year. In 1945, he was appointed Commandant of the Indian Air Training Corps. After the war, he took command of the Royal Indian Air Force Depot in Arakkonam.[1]
On 14 May 1947, he was promoted to the acting rank of group captain and was appointed Senior Officer-in-charge of Administration at No. 2 Indian Group headquarters at Bangalore. He was promoted to the rank along with Wing Commander Mehar Singh.[3]
Post-Independence
On 4 November 1947, Narendra was promoted to the acting rank of air commodore, the third Indian to hold the rank, after Subroto Mukerjee and Aspy Engineer. He was appointed the Air Officer Commanding No. 2 Training Group, the precursor to Training Command. The group comprised the majority of the ground training schools and all units of the RIAF in Southern India.[4]
After a year-long tenure, he was appointed Air Officer-in-Charge Technical and Supply services at Air headquarters. One of the three Principal Staff Officers (PSO) at Air HQ, he had the directorates of Equipment and Technical services. The directorates were responsible for the procurement, maintenance and servicing of all aircraft of the RIAF. On 1 February 1949, the appointment was renamed to Air Officer-in-Charge Technical and Equipment Services. On 1 October 1951, he was made substantive air commodore.[5]
Death
Narendra was flying a Dakota No. HJ-920 from England to India. While flying over the Mediterranean between Malta and Cyprus, the aircraft encountered adverse weather conditions over Cyprus. An emergency landing at Nicosia was not possible because of poor visibility. The aircraft lost its way in the fog and crashed near Gulnar in the Mersin province in southern Turkey, resulting in the death of all five crew. Along with Narendra were Flying Officer P. V. Phillipose, Flying Officer Sunil Kumar Ghosh, Sergeant B. S. Gill and Sergeant D'Souza.[6]
The remains of Narendra, Ghosh and Gill were cremated with full military honours by the
Personal life
Narendra married Devinderbir Kaur Sahiba, the daughter of Ranbir Singh Jind, the Maharaja of Jind State. The couple had a daughter. A son was born a few months after Narendra's death. His brothers-in-law, husbands of his wife's sisters, were Air Commodores R. H. D. Singh and J. C. Verma.[citation needed]
See also
References
- ^ a b c "AIR COMMODORE NARENDRA" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ "Air Commodore Narendra – Bharat Rakshak". bharat-rakshak.com. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ a b "TWO NEW GROUP CAPTAINS FOR RIAF" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ "AIR COMMODORE NARENDRA TO COMMAND NO.2 GROUP RIAF" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ "Service Record for Air Commodore Narendra 1556 GD(P) at Bharat Rakshak.com". Bharat Rakshak. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ "AIRCRASH VICTIMS" (PDF). archive.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
- ^ "NewspaperSG - Terms and Conditions". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 19 December 2022.