Because I am a soldier born to die: Emotional post on Wing Commander D V Sathe
New Delhi, Aug 08: A post on Facebook that would leave many teary-eyed was posted by Nilesh Sathe, the cousin of Wing Commander Deepak Sathe who was the captain of the ill-fated aircraft that crashed in Kozhikode on Friday.
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During his 22 year career in the Indian Air Force, he learnt flying the Soviet origin MiG-21.
He was awarded the coveted sword of honour in recognition of his skills when he graduated from the Air Force Academy at Dundigal near Hyderabad in 1981. He was also a former alumnus of the National Defence Academy.
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He joined the IAF in 1981 and quit prematurely in June 2003. He was a very skilled pilot and had mentored several young pilots.
A soldier lays down his life: Read Nilesh Sathe's post:
Its
hard
to
believe
that
Dipak
Sathe,
my
friend
more
than
my
cousin,
is
no
more.
He
was
pilot
of
Air
India
Express
carrying
passengers
from
Dubai
in
'Vande
Bharat
Mission',
which
skidded
off
the
runway
at
Kozhikode
International
Airport
yesterday
night.
What
is
learnt
is
as
follows:
Landing
gears
didn't
work.
Ex
IAF
pilot
made
three
rounds
of
airport
to
empty
the
fuel
which
saved
plane
from
catching
fire.
That's
why
there
was
no
smoke
seen
coming
from
the
crashed
aircraft.
He
turned
off
the
engine
right
before
the
crash.
He
belly
landed
after
the
3rd
iteration.
The
right
wing
was
ruptured.
The Pilot martyred but saved life of 180 co-passengers.
Dipak was an experienced aerial operator with 36 years of flying experience. A passout of NDA, topper in the 58th course and an awardee of 'Sword of Honour', Dipak served Indian Air Force for 21 years before joining as a Commercial Pilot with Air India in 2005.
He called me just a week before and was jovial, as always. When I asked him about the 'Vande Bharat' Mission, he was proud of bringing back our countrymen from Arab countries. I asked him, "Dipak, do you carry empty Aircraft since those countries are not allowing entry of passengers?" He had replied," Oh, No. We carry fruits, vegetables, medicines etc to these countries and never the aircraft flies to these countries empty." That was my last conversation with him.
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He survived in air crash in early nineties when he was in Airforce. He was hospitalised for 6 months for multiple skull injuries and nobody thought that he will fly again. But his strong will power and love for flying made him clear the test again. It was a miracle.
He leaves behind his wife and two sons, both pass outs of IIT Mumbai. He is a son of Colonel Vasant Sathe who stays in Nagpur along with his wife. His brother, Capt Vikas, was also an Armyman who laid his life while serving in the Jammu region.
A soldier lays his life to save the lives of his countrymen.
It reminds me of a poem by a soldier :
If
I
die
in
a
war
zone,
Box
me
up
&
send
me
home
Put
my
medals
on
my
chest,
Tell
my
Mom
I
did
the
best
Tell
my
Dad
not
to
bow,
He
won't
get
tension
from
me
now,
Tell
my
brother
to
study
perfectly,
Keys
of
my
bike
will
be
his
permanently
Tell
my
Sis
not
to
be
upset,
Her
Bro
will
not
rise
after
this
sunset
And
tell
my
love
not
to
cry,
"Because
I
am
a
soldier
Born
to
Die...."
...
Nilesh
Sathe