Battle of Boyra: When the IAF shot down 3 F-86 Saber jets of Pakistan in the 1971 war.- CMB College

Battle of Boyra: When the IAF shot down 3 F-86 Saber jets of Pakistan in the 1971 war.

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On 3 December 1971, about two weeks before the official declaration of war, Indian tanks silenced the enemy in East Pakistan at the Battle of Gharibpur. It was aimed at striking the Boyra core area in East Pakistan.

Battle of Boyra
The Battle of Boyra was a land and air war fought between India and Pakistan on 22 November 1971.
Gnats from 22 Squadron ‘Swifts’ of the Indian Air Force intercepted three Pakistani F-86 Saber jets in midair and claimed their first kill of the war on 22 November. The battle is significant as it was the first engagement between the air forces of India and Pakistan and is seen as the culmination of the Battle of Gharibpur. In the Battle of Gharibpur, Mitra Bahini (Mitra Bahini means friendly army in Bengali) successfully attacked and captured Gharibpur as well as the area with battalion strength.

The Saber jet was detected by Indian radar near Jessore in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). The Gnats were intercepted from Dum Dum Airbase in West Bengal under the call sign ‘Cocktail’. Genets have a special place in the history of the Indian Air Force (IAF). In 1965, a Gnat piloted by Trevor Keeler of 23 Squadron shot down an F-86 Saber over Pathankot. The IAF claimed to have shot it down for the first time since independence.

India’s 42 Infantry Brigade of 9 Infantry Division under Headquarters 14 Punjab (Nabha Akal) was tasked with capturing Gharibpur, 9 km east of Boyra Salient, on the morning of 21 November. Early on 21 November, 14 Punjab was attacked by three battalions of the Pakistani 107 Infantry Brigade, supported by M24 Chaffee tanks. After this, in the Battle of Gharibpur, PT-76 tanks of India’s 45th Cavalry completely destroyed Pakistani tanks. Pakistan army faced a crushing defeat in the war. The story of the Hindi film ‘Pippa’ is inspired by the Battle of Boyra.

“Murder, murder, murder!”
Four IAF Gnats led by Flight Lt Ganapathy, Flight Lt Massey, Flying Officer Soares and FG Officer Lazarus sent their Gnats in the direction of Sabres. The command of the radar scope was with the FG of Bagchi. After about 17 minutes and 150×30 mm artillery shells, the Indian Air Force shot down a Sabre.

Flight Lieutenant Ganapathi radioed the message – “Kill, kill, kill!” The Indian Air Force also shared a montage of images of a Saber being killed by a Gnat. These pictures were taken from the gun camera of one of the Gnats.

At that time thousands of people saw Boyra’s aerial battle. Four IAF pilots were Boyra’s heroes. Defense Minister Jagjivan Ram garlanded the Gnet pilots who shot down the Sabers.

For more than 7 hours the sound of guns echoed in Gharibpur. Major DS Narang (Major) was martyred in action. Major Narang was awarded the Mahavir Chakra (posthumously).

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