NEW DELHI: The Centre on Thursday awarded the Vir Chakra to nine Indian Air Force fighter pilots who played a key role in Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist headquarters and Pakistan’s military assets.Vir Chakra is India’s third-highest wartime gallantry award.The awardees include:
- Group Captain Ranjeet Singh Sidhu
- Group Captain Manish Arora
- Group Captain Animesh Patnim
- Group Captain Kunal Kalra
- Wing Commander Joy Chandra
- Squadron Leader Sarthak Kumar
- Squadron Leader Siddhant Singh
- Squadron Leader Rizwan Malik
- Flight Lieutenant Arshweer Singh Thakur
During the operation, the Indian Air Force also brought down at least six Pakistani aircraft.In coordinated action, the Indian Army carried out targeted strikes, eliminating nine terrorist bases belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.The Air Force executed precision strikes on four sites inside Pakistan, while five other locations were hit in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.Operation Sindoor was a tri-services mission jointly conducted by the Army, Navy, and Air Force, entirely from Indian soil.