Suryakant Chintaman Chafekar

Air Vice Marshal Suryakant Chintaman Chafekar AVSM, Shaurya Chakra is a retired Indian Air Force (IAF) officer who served as the Senior Air and Administration Staff Officer, Maintenance Command, IAF, from 1 July 2016 until he retired on 30 September 2017. He was the commanding officer of No. 48 Squadron IAF. During his career he landed Antonov An-32 aircraft on High Altitude Advanced Landing Grounds (HAALG)s in Daulat Beg Oldi, Fukche and Nyoma.

Suryakant Chintaman Chafekar was born on 27 September 1959 at Nagpur, Maharashtra, to Captain Chintaman Vishnu Chafekar and Vijaya Chintaman Chafekar. Captain Chintaman Vishnu Chafekar was an officer in the Indian Territorial Army and a social activist. Vijaya Chintaman Chafekar was a school principal from Nagpur.

Suryakant Chintaman Chafekar is an alumnus of Dharampeth Science College, Nagpur; Air Force Academy, Dundigal; Flying Instructors School; Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, Tamil Nadu; and College of Air Warfare, Secunderabad.

Chafekar was commissioned as a pilot officer in the transport stream of the IAF on 29 December 1982. He has held several important command, staff and instructor appointments during his career. He was considered to be an expert in flying fixed wing aircraft in the Himalayan Region, and supervised humanitarian assistance and disaster relief tasks such as flood and earthquake relief operations.

On 18 February 2002, during a trial landing at Kargil airfield near the Pakistan border his aircraft was fired upon by a Pakistani missile that hit one of the engines, setting the aircraft on fire. He continued to fly the aircraft with only one operational engine, and landed it at IAF airfield at Leh.

During his tenure as the commanding officer of No. 48 Squadron IAF, on 31 May 2008, Chafekar landed an Antonov An-32 aircraft at a HAALG at Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) (16,700 feet (5,100 m)) about 9 km (5.6 mi) from the Line of Actual Control with China. He was awarded the Shaurya Chakra by the President of India for this mission.

On 4 November 2008, while Chafekar was still serving with No. 48 Squadron, he landed an Antonov An-32 at the Fukche HAALG approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) from the Line of Actual Control with China. This airstrip sat at a height of 13,700 ft (4.2 km) and was last used during the 1962 Sino-Indian War.

Around 15 months after the trial landings at DBO and Fukche, on 18 September 2009, Chafekar landed an Antonov An-32 at the Nyoma ALG, about 23 km (14 mi) from the Line of Actual Control with China.

During his career Chafekar was also awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal by the President of India for his service to the Indian Air Force, from which he retired on 30 September 2017.

• Ati Vishisht Seva Medal – Citation: "Distinguished service of an exceptional order in the Indian Air Force", 2015
• Shaurya Chakra – Citation: "Planned and executed the Antonov An-32 landing at Daulat Beg Oldi during tenure of Commanding Officer of No. 48 Squadron IAF", 2009

After retiring from the IAF, Chafekar began lecturing at educational and professional institutes, and has worked as a defence analyst. He has published articles in many Indian newspapers including The Hitavada, The Times of India, and Loksatta.