THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On Monday, the Southern Air Command (SAC) received a man who has quite a few legendary distinctions to his name.
He has, among other things, flown over 60 types of aircraft - from pre-World War II era biplanes to the more contemporary Gnats and Vampires, won the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for gallantry during WW II, became the Air Chief, and today, at 90, is the only living Indian Military Officer with a five-star rank.
Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh, who has inspired generations of air warriors, paid his first-ever visit to Thiruvananthapuram and the SAC on Monday.
He was accompanied by his wife Teji Arjan Singh. Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of SAC, Air Marshal S. Radhakrishnan, and other top officers of SAC received the couple.
Born on April 15, 1919, and commissioned into the Royal Indian Air Force as a pilot officer aged 20, Arjan Singh is the only officer of the IAF to be promoted to five-star rank, equal to a Field Marshal.
With the death of Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw in June 2008, Arjan Singh is presently the only living Indian military officer with a five-star rank.
During World War II, he got inducted into the war right from the beginning of his career. He saw action in the NWFP and Burma. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for having successfully led the premier No: 1 Sqn in combat.
Post-Independence, Arjan Singh held numerous operational posts. In 1947, he was a Wing Commander at the Air Station, Ambala. He was posted as Director (Training), Air HQ. He rose to become Air Vice Marshal in 1959 and subsequently, on August 1, 1964, Chief of Air Staff. He retired from the IAF in August 1969 at the age of 50.
In 1971, Arjan Singh was posted as Ambassador to Switzerland and the Holy See. The year 1974 saw him as Ambassador to Kenya. He has also had a short stint as Lt Governor of Delhi. A recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, Arjan Singh was raised to Marshal of the Air Force in January, 2002.
Arjan Singh will leave the city on Tuesday.