Varun Singh (Indian Air Force Officer)

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Last edited December 15, 2021

Not to be confused with Varun Singh Bhati.

Group Captain Varun Singh is an Indian Air Force group captain and pilot who is the sole survivor of the 2021 Indian Air Force Mil Mi-17 crash.[1][2] He is a member of the staff of the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), and was a passenger accompanying the Chief of Defence Staff of the Indian Armed Forces, General Bipin Rawat, who was enroute to make a speech to military students and staff at the DSSC, when the Mil Mi-17V-5 they were onboard crashed.[3]

Early life

Singh was born in 1982 in Kanholi, in the Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh.[4] He has stated that as a child he considered himself to be a "very average" and "mediocre" student, but he " had a passion for airplanes and aviation." He served as the representative for his school in the Aeronautical Society of India Quiz twice.[5]

He first studied in Odisha before he applied for the National Defence Academy; passing the exams on his first try.[6][7]

Career

Singh joined the army in 2004, and was promoted to the rank of Wing Commander in 2017. He achieved the rank of group captain in 2021.

Gaganyaan space program

Singh became one of the top twelve initial choices for the Gaganyaan crew module, but was unable to attend due to medical issues.[8][9] In September 2021 Singh commented that "In 2019 I was in the first list of 12 candidates for ISRO's Gaganyaan programme. Though, I did not make the final cut due to a medical requirement."[5]

Shaurya Chakra

In 2020, when he was a wing commander, he received the Shaurya Chakra award from Ram Nath Kovind on Independence Day after he managed to safely land his heavily malfunctioning LCA Tejas aircraft from 10,000 feet in the air during an emergency, managing to save the lives of several people.[10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]

2021 air crash

On 8 December 2021, a helicopter carrying Singh (who was the crew captain)[18] and 13 others broke down on their way to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu. All of the people, including the head of the Indian Armed Forces, Bipin Rawat, died, with the sole exception of Singh. The Indian Air force confirmed that he was being treated at a hospital in Tamil Nadu. He was reported to have serious injuries and to be on life support.[19][12][11][20][14][21] According to doctors, he was still conscious when he was taken for surgery.[22]

Singh was airlifted to a hospital in Bangalore [23](where better treatment could be provided) and survived the night. His status is reported to remain critical[24] but his health better than before.[25][26][27][28][29] Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has assured that "all efforts are being made to save him."[30][31] Several people, expressed their wishes for Singh to recover, including his family, Congress, Ram Nath Kovind, the US embassy to India,[32] and members of his hometown.[33][34]

Personal life

Singh is 39 years old and is married with two children.[7]

His father, KP Singh, is a retired colonel for the Army Air Defence living in Bhopal.[7] Varun Singh's brother, Tanuj, is a Lieutenant Commander in the Indian Navy.[30][35]

His uncle is Akhilesh Pratap Singh, a politician who represented Rudrapur, Uttar Pradesh for five years until 2017. He also serves as spokesman for the Indian National Congress.[7][33]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bipin Rawat No More: Group Captain Varun Singh Only Survivor In the Chopper Crash|India Today". Oakland News Now.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ↑ "India defence boss, wife and 11 others killed in helicopter crash". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ↑ Saravanan, M.; Sundar, P. S. (8 December 2021). "First Chief of Defence Bipin Rawat, 12 others killed in chopper crash in Tamil Nadu's Coonoor". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  4. ↑ "Who is Varun Singh Lone Survivor Of IAF Chopper Crash That Killed CDS Bipin Rawat". outlookindia. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "You may be mediocre in school, but it's not what decide your future: Survivor of chopper crash". Mathrubhumi. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ↑ "Coonoor Chopper Crash: Captain Varun Singh's Village in UP Continues to Pray For Him". CNN-News18. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "'We are hoping he will bounce back': Father of lone survivor of Coonoor chopper crash". The Indian Express. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  8. ↑ ""It's OK To Be Mediocre": Officer Who Survived Crash Wrote To His School". NDTV. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ↑ Dec 9, Arvind Chauhan / TNN /; 2021; Ist, 20:26. "East Uttar Pradesh village soars high on hope for its fighter's safety". The Times of India. Retrieved 2021-12-09. {{cite web}}: |last2= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ↑ "IAF helicopter crash: Lone survivor had close call last year, got Shaurya Chakra for gallantry". The Indian Express. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Who is Group Captain Varun Singh? Know about lone survivor of IAF chopper crash". Hindustan Times. 2021-12-08. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Shaurya Chakra awardee Group Captain Varun Singh, sole survivor of IAF chopper crash, under treatment". India Today. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ↑ "Lone survivor of Mi17V5 helicopter crash is decorated IAF pilot who saved an LCA Tejas". Deccan Herald. 2021-12-08. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Quint, The (2021-12-08). "Shaurya Chakra Awardee Capt Varun Singh the Sole Survivor of IAF Chopper Crash". TheQuint. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ↑ "India: Shaurya Chakra awardee survivor can throw light on IAF chopper crash". Gulf News. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  16. ↑ "IAF helicopter crash: Lone survivor had close call last year, got Shaurya Chakra for gallantry". The Indian Express. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  17. ↑ "President Kovind confers Shaurya Chakra on Wing Commander Varun Singh". ANI News. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ↑ Diaz, Kim (2021-12-09). "Crew Captain Varun Singh, who survived the helicopter crash, is being shifted to Bangalore for higher remedy". TheNewsTrace. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  19. ↑ Bhandari, Shashwat (2021-12-08). "IAF helicopter crash: Group Captain Varun Singh lone survivor, battling for life". www.indiatvnews.com. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  20. ↑ "Varun Singh, sole survivor of Indian military helicopter crash". The Business Standard. 2021-12-08. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  21. ↑ "India military helicopter crash kills 13, including defence chief of staff". CBC News.
  22. ↑ "Sole survivor of IAF chopper crash has family serving in all three services of armed forces". India Today. Retrieved 2021-12-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  23. ↑ "CDS chopper crash: Lone survivor Group Captain Varun Singh being shifted to Bengaluru, says his father". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  24. ↑ Service, Tribune News. "Shaurya Chakra awardee Varun Singh survives one night; next 48 hours critical". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  25. ↑ Dec 9, Shanta Thiagarajan / TNN /; 2021; Ist, 16:59. "Ooty chopper crash lone survivor airlifted to Bengaluru for treatment". The Times of India. Retrieved 2021-12-09. {{cite web}}: |last2= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. ↑ "Group Captain Varun Singh, sole survivor of crash, maintaining vitals". Hindustan Times. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  27. ↑ Dec 9, Shanta Thiagarajan / TNN /; 2021; Ist, 16:59. "Ooty chopper crash lone survivor airlifted to Bengaluru for treatment". The Times of India. Retrieved 2021-12-09. {{cite web}}: |last2= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ↑ "Group Captain Varun Singh, who survived chopper crash, to be shifted to Bengaluru". The News Minute. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  29. ↑ "Shaurya Chakra awardee Varun Singh survives one night; next 48 hours critical". The Tribune (Chandigarh).
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 "Crash Survivor, Group Captain Varun Singh, Airlifted To Bengaluru". NDTV. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  31. ↑ Quint, The (2021-12-08). "Varun Singh on Life Support, All Efforts Being Made: Rajnath Singh in Parliament". TheQuint. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  32. ↑ "CDS Rawat Death: US, Israel, Pak and Other Countries Express Condolences". The Wire. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 "Prayers galore amid pall of gloom at Group Captain Varun Singh's village in UP". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  34. ↑ "President Kovind prays for speedy recovery of chopper crash's lone survivor IAF Group Captain Varun Singh". ANI News. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  35. ↑ "Chopper crash: Lone survivor group captain Varun Singh being shifted to Bengaluru hospital". Hindustan Times. 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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