Veteran AVM Cecil Parker has his own take on Then&Now! Ancient Aviator Anecdote NOW AND THEN Last month, after a gap of three years, I attended the bi-annual Combined Graduation Parade (CGP) at the Air Force Academy (AFA) in Hyderabad. Having been a Commandant of the AFA 31 years ago, I was of course quite familiar with the entire preparation and procedure for and final presentation of the CGP. However, over the years numbers have increased and now a total of 193 cadets (including 41 women) plus six naval aviators, all from eight different courses covering Pilot, Navigator and five Ground Duties specializations, were commissioned as Flying Officers into the Indian Air Force (IAF) by the Reviewing Officer (RO) who was Chief of Air Staff (CAS). As a visual spectacle the CGP comprising a para drop, flypasts, rotary wing formation flying and solo aerobatics by a high performance aircraft, together with a smart parade against a back-drop of aircraft, is a treat hard to beat even for vintage air veterans. I happened to be seated next to a very senior, respected and much loved ex- CAS who, even now in his tenth decade, is as spry, fit and alert as ever. Though 10 years his junior, we reminisced about the changes in the IAF we had experienced and seen. He himself was commissioned 72 years ago in Ambala from No 11 Pilots Course (PC) as an acting Pilot Officer and sent into operations a week later as WW II was in progress! I recalled my relatively simple Passing Out Parade 62 years ago in Begumpet where 30 of us from No 58 PC were commissioned as Pilot Officers by Subroto Mukherjee in front of a small gathering of our instructors, their families, friends and a few visitors which included my parents, a four – year old brother and a very young mulkhi school teacher who is now my wife of over 58 years! In those days it had been a tradition for newly commissioned pilots to present their new ‘wings’ to their flying instructor and receive, wear and retain his old one. I was one of two graduating pupils of the same instructor who had kept a second used wing in his pocket thus ensuring that we were both treated alike! It was a small, symbolic gesture but a high-value reminder of a never changing guru-shishya relationship. On the evening of the CGP, a delightfully informal Dinner was hosted by the CAS who incidentally is just a few years older than my son! He did comment on the somewhat time consuming and tiring procedure of individual commissioning by the RO which involved removal of near 400 shoulder flashes to reveal Flying Officer rank badges, 200 hand shakes / salutes, pinning-on of close to 100 wings / brevets and mentioned that the IAF was trying to find an acceptable alternative. There is nothing so permanent as change, so here is a thought to reduce time spent on the commissioning element of CGP: ‘At an appropriate order from the Parade Commander, there is a roll of drums during which each graduating Flight Cadet, in a synchronized movement, will raise both hands to remove the white shoulder flashes, place them in his / her trouser pocket(s) from where a wing / brevet (if applicable) is brought out from the right pant pocket and affixed to the loop / hook on top of the left shirt pocket. All then continue to stand to attention attired correctly while the RO commissions them verbally and collectively into the IAF’ Every now and then progress requires some change. The suggested change from individual to collective commissioning will save up to 20% in time and a great deal of wear and tear on the RO! July 2014 Cecil Parker The author is a retired air vice marshal of the IAF and a freelance writer who can be contacted at shirleygloria70@yahoo
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 04:11:45 +0000
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