Departures of note

Flight Lieutenant Alfred Tyrone Cooke, VrC, was an Indian Air Force pilot who became a celebrated war hero for his actions during the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War. On September 7, 1965, while on combat air patrol in a Hawker Hunter fighter over Kalaikunda in West Bengal, he and his wingman Flying Officer Subodh Chandra Mamgain intercepted a Pakistan Air Force raid launched from East Pakistan, holding off a force three times their size and shooting down a PAF Sabre jet. His 'legendary dogfight' was described by the IAF as a masterclass in aggressive air combat and unwavering resolve, and it influenced the subsequent course of the war in the eastern theatre. For his conspicuous gallantry, tactical brilliance, and disregard for personal safety, he was awarded the Vir Chakra, India's third-highest wartime gallantry award.