Flying Officer KK Kapur

Flying Officer Kewal Krishan Kapur hailed from New Delhi and was born on 07 Jul 1942.  Son of Shri Lala Ram Pyare Lal Kapur, he grew up in old Delhi and got selected to join the Indian Air Force after completing his schooling. He was commissioned into the Indian Air Force as a Pilot Officer on 09 Mar 1963 before he could turn 21 years old. He was commissioned in the flying stream of the IAF and got trained as a Navigator as part of the 23rd NAV course. After completing his flying training, he got posted to an operational squadron.

After joining the unit, he soon gained expertise in various air operations and honed the required navigational skills related to combat flying. He got promoted to the rank of Flying Officer on 09 March 1964. In the very early part of his service career, with barely two years of service, Fg Offr KK Kapur got involved in the thick of operations as his squadron got combat-ready on the western border when the war with Pakistan became imminent in 1965.

Offensive Air Operation (Indo-Pak War): 21 Sep 1965

During 1971, Fg Offr KK Kapur was serving with the 5 Squadron known as "Tuskers" which was operating Canberra fighter bomber aircraft. The 5 Squadron was formed at Kanpur on 2 November 1948, under the command of Squadron Leader JRS “Danny” Dantra. Within a couple of months, it moved to Poona (now Pune), which was to remain its base for the next eight years. The Squadron was initially equipped with B-24 Liberators, but on 1 September 1957 under the command of Wing Commander (Later Air Commodore) WR Dani, became the first IAF squadron to be equipped with the B(I)58 bomber-interdictor version of the Canberra. During the 1965 war, No 5 Squadron, under the command of Wing Commander (later Air Marshal) Prem Pal Singh,  took the war straight to the heart of the PAF establishment. The Squadron raided Sargodha on the night of 6/7 September itself (the very night that the IAF was cleared to conduct offensive operations), and over half a dozen times more in the course of the war. 

On the night of 13/14 September, the squadron carried out an unprecedented attack, on the PAF base at Peshawar. This base was so deep in enemy territory that the PAF had assumed it was safe from IAF attack. The airbase was being used as the night harbour, where their strategic assets of the time, the B-57 force was based. The "Tuskers" surprised the PAF in the harbour, deep within their own territory. They damaged the runway and BPIs and threatened the entire PAF B-57 force with destruction. They evaded interception and returned to base without loss. The squadron also attacked several other PAF airbases during the war, including Akwal, Chaklala, Dab, Murid, Risalwala, and Wagowal. The squadron also provided close support to the Indian Army, attacking enemy troop concentrations at Chawinda, Kasur, Khem Karan, Pasrur, and Sialkot. Altogether, the squadron flew around 300 sorties in the course of the war. Most of its counter-air sorties were undertaken at night, while those on enemy troop concentrations were often undertaken in daylight. Fg Offr KK Kapur as 'Navigator' became part of various missions and played an important role in the Squadron's air effort. On 21 Sep 1965, Fg Offr KK Kapur was tasked with one more mission with Flight Lieutenant MM Lowe as the pilot of the aircraft. 

Fg Offr KK Kapur and Flt Lt MM Lowe's mission on that day was to carry out another raid on Sargodha airbase. After carrying out the necessary ground checks they took off in their Canberra B(I) 58 (IF-970) aircraft as planned. Flt Lt MM Lowe guided by his navigator Fg Offr KK Kapur reached over the target airbase. However as the airbase was crucial for the enemy, it was being defended by the PAF air defence assets including PAF F-104, aircraft. As Fg Offr KK Kapur and  Flt Lt MM Lowe's aircraft reached near the airbase, it came under attack by a PAF F-104. The Sidewinder missile of PAF F-104 hit its target and the aircraft became uncontrollable. Consequently, the aircrew were left with no choice, but to abandon the aircraft. The pilot, Flt Lt MM Lowe, bailed out successfully but Fg Offr KK Kapur could not and lost his life. Flt Lt Lowe was captured and made PoW. However, he was later repatriated to India in early 1966. Fg Offr Kewal Krishan Kapur was a committed soldier and a gallant air warrior, who laid down his life at the age of 23 years in the service of the nation.