Balidan Diwas
23 May 2017
Place of Supreme Sacrifice
Doulasang area, Arunachal Pradesh
Service Number
28010-A
Unit / Regiment
11 Wing, Air Force
Biography
Squadron Leader D Pankaj was a skilled and accomplished fighter pilot of the Indian Air Force. Over the course of his service he gained wide experience flying across several aircraft platforms and was regarded as a thorough professional. By 2017 he was posted to Air Force Station Tezpur, a strategically important base in the North East, where he flew the Sukhoi Su-30 MKI, one of the frontline fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force. On 23 May 2017, Squadron Leader Pankaj was airborne on an operational training mission, flying as part of a two-aircraft formation over Arunachal Pradesh near the India-China border. During the sortie his Su-30 lost radar contact and was reported missing. After an extensive search, the wreckage of the aircraft was located on 26 May 2017 in dense forest in the Doulasang area, around 60 kilometres from Tezpur. Squadron Leader D Pankaj laid down his life in the line of duty while serving the Indian Air Force in one of the country's most demanding operational regions.