Balidan Diwas
18 March 2006
Place of Supreme Sacrifice
Near Naubad, Bidar, Karnataka
State of Origin
New Delhi, Delhi
Service Number
22124
Unit / Regiment
52 Squadron, Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team
Biography
Wing Commander Dheeraj Bhatia was a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force who joined the service in 1995. A skilled aviator, he was selected for the prestigious Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) — the IAF's air display team based at Air Force Station Bidar, operating Kiran MK II aircraft. On March 18, 2006, during a training sortie, his Kiran MK II aircraft collided mid-air with another aircraft flown by Squadron Leader Shailendra Singh. Both aircraft entered a spin and crashed near Naubad, approximately three kilometers from Bidar, Karnataka. Wing Commander Bhatia made the supreme sacrifice in the service of the nation.
Sources
Information compiled from publicly available official and historical sources.
Veergati is an independent digital memorial and is not affiliated with the Government of India. Disclaimer & Sources
Remembered Alongside
Captain Anuj Nayyar
17 Jat · 1999
Major Ashwini Kumar Kanva
93 Field Regiment · 1987
Major Deepak Rawat
65 Engineer Regiment (Attached to 3 Rashtriya Rifles) · 2001
Major Dinesh Raghu Raman
34 Rashtriya Rifles · 2007
Captain Haneef Uddin
11 Rajputana Rifles · 1999
Lieutenant Colonel Harbans Lal Mehta
4 Madras, Madras Regiment · 1965