60 Years Ago: India struck the Sargodha airbase in Punjab, Pakistan, during Operation Sindoor. Satellite images taken after India’s attacks show a damaged runway at Sargodha, which is now named after Pakistan’s former air chief, Mushaf Ali Mir, who died in a crash in 2003.

During the 1965 India-Pakistan conflict, legendary dogfights took place at the Sargodha airfield, about 60 years ago. One notable duel occurred between Pakistan’s advanced F-104 Starfighter and India’s outdated Mystere IV A fighter, demonstrating that the pilot, not the aircraft, determines the outcome of a dogfight.

Sadly, Squadron Leader AB Devayya, the pilot in this duel, did not receive the recognition he deserved for over 20 years. He became the only member of the Indian Air Force to receive the Maha Vir Chakra, India’s second-highest gallantry honor, posthumously. 22 years after his death and burial in Pakistan.

Epic Battle in 1965:
The Indian bases at Adampur, Halwara, Pathankot, and Jamnagar were hit by the Pakistani Air Force on September 6. The Indian Air Force bombed the Sargodha airbase in a ferocious counterattack the following day. Both aircraft crashed when Squadron Leader AB Devayya’s Dassault Mystere IV A and Flight Lieutenant Amjad Hussain’s vastly superior PAF Starfighter collided. Devayya was unable to safely eject. The Pakistani pilot did. Devayya defeated the superior Starfighter in a dogfight that the rest of the Indian squadron was not aware of.

India’s Legendary Fighter:
The Indian security devices were not aware of the valiant act of Squadron Leader Devayya, and he was presumed lost. The British aviation historian John Fricker’s 1979 book, “India-Pakistan Air War of 1965,” which was sponsored by Pakistan, described a battle between a Mystere and the Starfighter piloted by Flt Lt Hussain. When Flt Lt Ahmed made the error of reducing down to outturn his resolute opponent, the Mystere fighter gained an edge and showed admirable bravery by remaining with the Starfighter. The Mystere pressed home its attack and hit the Starfighter with multiple cannon hits after the F-104 pilot failed to clear its tail during the duel.

Various Claims on this Story:

Several experts have contested and denounced Fricker’s book, calling it Pakistani propaganda. In a podcast, PVS Jagan Mohan, co-author of India-Pakistan Air War of 1965, explained that Group Captain OP Taneja, the Commanding Officer of No. 1 Squadron, read Fricker’s book and concluded that Devayya shot down the F-104, since he was the only pilot who died in that operation. Later that night, enemy fire killed Flight Lt. B. Guha during another attack.

Mr. Mohan told Air Force historian PR Ganapathy on the Blue Skies Podcast that all Indian aircraft involved in the morning raid returned to Adampur, except the one flown by Devayya. Group Captain Taneja then wrote to Air Chief Marshal Idris Hasan Latif, requesting him to recommend Squadron Leader AB Devayya for the Maha Vir Chakra (Posthumous).

Also Read: India Will Respond Strongly to Terror: PM Modi in Adampur

Recognition After Decades:
Following the dogfight, squadron leader Devayya is thought to have perished in a crash on Pakistani soil. His age was thirty-two. On his behalf, his wife Sundari Devayya accepted the Maha Vir Chakra twenty-two years later. Additionally, the Bollywood film Sky Force repeated his story sixty years after his passing.

Few people are aware of this Indian pilot’s valiant achievement, but those who are are reminded of Squadron Leader Devayya and his fight to the death whenever Sargodha is brought up.

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