President Confers Vayu SenaMedal (Gallantry) To Wing Commander Sukhwinder Singh Multani Flying (Pilot)
 |
| Sqb Ldr Sukhwinder Singh Multani |
NationalDefence Bureau
New Delhi, 25 January 2017
In the wee
hours of 18 May 16, Indian Air Force received a frantic call from Sri Mata
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board informing a forest fire raging on Trikuta hill which
was fast approaching the shrine. Squadron Leader SS Multani (Now Wing
Commander) was immediately tasked for dousing the fire by the use of Bambi
bucket. He immediately swung into action and got airborne for the site. By
then, the fire had turned into an inferno and was only 100m from the main
walkway to the shrine, endangering the lives of thousands of pilgrims. The fire
was spotted on a steep slope surrounded by tall trees making it inaccessible to
the fire fighters on ground. Realising the time criticality, with his
experience and awareness of the area, he identified the reservoir of Salal Dam
at Riasi as a potential source for filling up water. Reduced visibility due to
smoke, excessive turbulence and limited turn radius reduced any margin of error
as the aircraft had to be operated at its maximum capacity. The alignment of
the fire line required the water drop to be carried out in a direction facing
into the hill, making it dangerously difficult unlike other fire fighting
operations. With the Bambi bucket under slung at 30 m below the aircraft, the
terrain clearance was marginal. The complexity of the mission required courage
and skillful handling of the helicopter maintaining a high degree of
situational awareness.
During the
process of dousing the fire the bunch cable holding the Bambi bucket had
entangled, thereby making it impossible to fill up the water. Returning to base
for rectification would have caused loss of precious time thereby, allowing the
fire to spread putting in danger lives of thousands of pilgrims. Sqn Ldr
Multani located a restricted but clear patch next to the reservoir and with no
assistance available on ground to secure the Bambi, he deftly manoeuvered the
aircraft to land safely. Having removed the entanglement personally, he resumed
the fire fighting operations with courage and commitment. Accurate and
relentless operations were able to douse the fire, preventing a major
catastrophe in the Trikuta hills.
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President Confers Vayu SenaMedal (Gallantry) To Wing Commander Sukhwinder Singh Multani Flying (Pilot)
Reviewed by National Defence Hindi
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22:15:00
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Reviewed by National Defence Hindi
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22:15:00
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