Balakat Air-Strike Hero Wing Commander Abhinandan Promoted To The Rank Of Group Captain

Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman has been promoted to the rank of Group Captain by the Indian Air Force (IAF).

Wing Commander Abhinandan, famous for shooting down a Pakistani F-16 fighter in February 2019 in the aftermath of the Balakot air strikes, will be picking up the Group Captain rank in the coming days on the basis of the available vacancies.

Abhinandan was awarded the Vir Chakra for his role in the February 2019 air strike on terrorist camps in Pakistan.

Following that, the soon-to-be Group Captain was held captive in Pakistan for three days before being famously released amidst intense diplomatic pressure exerted by India.

“It’s a routine promotion, along with his course mates who have made the grade after requisite service,” an officer confirmed about this development in a report by the Times of India (TOI).

Wing Commander Abhinandan’s unit 51 Squadron had obtained a unit citation for thwarting the aerial attack by the Pakistani Air Force on 27^th February, 2019.