No. 51 Squadron IAF

No. 51 Squadron
Active	23 December 1957 - Present
Country	Republic of India
Branch	Indian Air Force
Role	Fighter
Garrison/HQ	Srinagar AFS
Nickname(s)	Sword Arms
Motto(s)	Yudhya Mahaspara Bhayankara which means "valour for victory"

No. 51 Squadron "Sword Arms" is a fighter squadron of Indian air force, based in Srinagar air force station. The squadron is under the western command of Indian air force.

History

No.51 Squadron was initially raised in AFS Chandigarh in 1985, then being equipped with Mig-21 Type 75 variant which later went on to be upgraded to the Mig-21 Bison variant. The squadron was shortly relocated to AFS Srinagar.

Notable Incidents

No. 51 Squadron "Sword Arms"On 27 February 2019, Varthaman was flying a MiG-21 as a part of a sortie that was scrambled to intercept an intrusion by Pakistan aircraft into Jammu and Kashmir. In the dogfight that ensued, he crossed into Pakistan territory where he was struck by a missile. Varthaman ejected and descended safely in the village of Horran in Pakistan administered Kashmir, approximately 7 km from the Line of Control.[17][18] It was claimed by local villagers that Varthaman could be identified as an Indian pilot by the Indian flag on his parachute.[17] Upon landing, Varthaman asked the villagers if he was in India. The locals responded with pro-Pakistan slogans, after which Varthaman began to run while firing warning shots. He ran for approximately 500 metres, to a small pond, where he attempted to sink and swallow some of his documents. Subsequently, he was captured and manhandled by the villagers before being rescued by the Pakistan Army.[19][18]

Later that day, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs claimed that an Indian pilot was missing in action after a MiG-21 Bison fighter plane was lost while engaging with Pakistani jets.[20][17][21]