Arjun Sardana

Biography

Captain Arjun Sardana hailed from Noida in the Gautam Buddh Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh and was born on 04 December 1973, the son of Shri VP Sardana and Smt Veena Sardana. Drawn to the armed forces from his younger days, he pursued that dream through his education and eventually joined the Indian Military Academy. Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, his first assignment took him to a field area, after which he opted for the Army Aviation Corps and trained as a helicopter pilot. By 2004, he had matured into a professionally competent helicopter pilot with expertise across a wide range of air operations. In October 2004, Captain Sardana was serving with the 23(I) Reconnaissance and Observation Flight, operating under the control of 6 Mountain Division based at Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. On 29 October 2004, the General Officer Commanding, Major General DP Singh, decided to conduct a reconnaissance of the border posts of his units, and the task was assigned to the 23(I) R&O Flight. Lieutenant Colonel PK Pande, as captain of the aircraft, and Captain Arjun Sardana, as co-pilot, were detailed to fly the mission in their single-engine Cheetah helicopter, a versatile and rugged machine well suited to observation and recce roles in high-altitude terrain. The crew, along with Major General DP Singh, took off from Bareilly at around 7:30 am after completing the mandatory airworthiness checks. At about 9:30 am the helicopter lost contact with air traffic control, apparently after developing a serious snag that rendered it uncontrollable. Despite the experience of both pilots, the aircraft could not be recovered and crashed near the Indo-Tibetan border a few kilometres from Badrinath, with the wreckage later located near Mana Pass. Captain Arjun Sardana laid down his life in the line of duty at the age of 30.