Engineer-turned Keralite Air Force officer Vineeth feted with Vayu Sena Medal

Thiruvananthapuram: Squadron Leader GL Vineeth has bagged the Vayu Sena Medal for his exceptional piloting skills and a high standard of professionalism, in recovering a damaged aircraft and thereby saving its occupants.

An engineer by profession, 35-year-old Vineeth hails from the state capital city and was a direct entry candidate to the Air Force in 2010. Since then, he has had no reason to look back.

What fetched him the accolades of a Vayu Sena Medal was an incident that occurred on October 19, last year, when he was detailed as the captain of a transport aircraft for an instructional sortie.

According to the IAF, the sortie was uneventful until the aircraft climbed to 11000 feet in the base local flying area. But while demonstrating a stall manoeuvre, a loud noise was heard by the crew and the aircraft yawed and rolled to the left viciously.

The port engine oil pressure warning light came on along with the master warning light, which indicated that the port engine had suffered severe mechanical damage.

Engine failure while in a stalled state of flight at low speeds with reduced control effectiveness makes the task of recovery challenging and calls for a high degree of skill levels.

Any delay in regaining control of the aircraft may have resulted in the aircraft entering into a spin or in a catastrophic accident but Vineeth's prompt actions and high degree of piloting skills prevented the aircraft from going into an unusual attitude.

Despite experiencing a critical and undocumented emergency of dire nature, he maintained his composure down the port engine to prevent any further damage to the engine and airframe.

His exemplary piloting skills and flawless crew coordination, with a composed mental state under extreme adverse conditions, were instrumental in successfully executing a safe single engine landing.

With inputs from agencies

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