IAF pilot Abhinandan Varthman awarded Vir Chakra

New Delhi : Indian Air Force ace pilot Group Captain Abhinandan Varthaman has been awarded the Vir Chakra by President Ram Nath Kovind in an investiture ceremony on Monday.

Abhinandan Varthaman had recently received promotion and now he is a Group Captain.

The IAF pilot had made headlines after he shot down a Pakistani F-16 fighter aircraft during aerial combat on February 27 a day after the Balakot airstrike.

During the fight, his plane crashed over Pakistan occupied Kashmir and he was captured by the Pakistan Army. The Pakistan Army was forced to release him due to the extensive pressure exerted by the Indian side along with international intervention into the matter.

Abhinandan Varthaman was part of the Srinagar-based 51 squadron and had flown to thwart an aerial attack launched by the Pakistanis on February 27, 2019.

India had launched an aerial strike on Pakistan's terrorist facility in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa area run by the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) on February 26.