Pankaj Kumar Nandal

Biography

Flying Officer Pankaj Kumar Nandal hailed from Nandal village in Rohtak district of Haryana and was born on 13 February 1991. The son of an IAF veteran, JWO Krishan Chander Nandal, and Smt Usha Devi, he spent much of his childhood with his paternal grandparents. He studied at various schools, including Air Force School, Adampur; Kendriya Vidyalaya Nasik; and schools in Rohtak, passing every class with distinction before earning a BSc in aeronautical science from Chennai. A keen sportsman, he excelled in softball, baseball and throwball, and was named "Best Allrounder Player" by the Softball Association of India in 2007. Inspired by his father's service, Pankaj cleared the Combined Defence Services Examination in 2012 and was selected for the flying branch of the Indian Air Force. He joined the Air Force Academy on 7 January 2013 as part of the 194th Pilots' Course, trained as a transport pilot, and was commissioned as a Flying Officer on 20 December 2014, becoming the first Air Force officer from his village. He was subsequently posted to an operational squadron to sharpen his flying skills. By July 2016, Fg Offr Nandal was serving with 33 Squadron based at Sulur, Coimbatore. On 22 July 2016 he was tasked as co-pilot of an An-32 (K-2743) carrying men and material from Chennai to Port Blair, with 29 people on board. The twin-engine transport took off from Tambaram Air Force Station at 8.30 am, but at 9.12 am, about 151 nautical miles east of Chennai, it lost contact with ground radar and vanished over the sea. Despite one of India's largest maritime search operations, the aircraft could not be traced, and all 29 aboard were declared presumed dead. The aircraft's debris was finally located in January 2024. Fg Offr Pankaj Kumar Nandal was lost in the line of duty, a dedicated air warrior who gave his life in service of the nation.