On September 7, 1965, during the Indo-Pak war, a young Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot took part in the world’s first daring daylight airstrike on Pakistan’s Sargodha airbase. That pilot, Air Marshal Philip Rajkumar (Retd), now 84, recalls the mission that earned him a Mention in Despatches for gallantry and remains one of the most iconic operations in IAF history.
“The Sargodha strike was about courage, precision, and faith in one’s squadron. Even after six decades, the memory of that mission is etched in my mind,” said Air Marshal Rajkumar. India struck again at Sargodha airbase, besides other targets, in the recent Operation Sindhoor.
