Flight Lieutenant Aman Singh Hans (36412) was commissioned as a fighter pilot in the Flying branch of the IAF on 15 Jun 19 and is on the posted strength of a MiG-29 Sqn since 07 Sep 20.

On 28 Mar 24, the officer was authorised to fly a long range ferry mission on MiG-29 aircraft by dark night, towards Exercise Gagan Shakti-24. After 20 minutes of flying time, at an altitude of 28,000 feet (8.5 km), the pilot felt a sudden blast in the cockpit with aircraft Head Up Display and visual reference to fly, blanking off. He realised that the canopy of the aircraft had flown off, exposing him to severe weather conditions with temperatures of minus 35° - 40° Celsius, dangers of decompression sickness, hypoxia and wind blast affecting eyes at that altitude and high speeds. In this grave situation, he maintained his composure and quickly took control of the aircraft. While flying on head down instruments, he announced the emergency using standby radio control, kept clear of the civil flying in the proximity and descended to a lower altitude of 3 km with no radio reception and severe pain in the eyes. He conveyed the flight information with utmost clarity to the controlling agencies and took prompt decision to land at the nearest airbase. He correctly assessed aircraft weight required for landing due to heavy fuel configuration and made a safe landing at the earliest.

Despite imminent danger to his own self and inhospitable environmental conditions, he displayed astute presence of mind, controlled the aircraft and initiated the recovery. His prompt actions and exemplary situational awareness led to the recovery of the aircraft which otherwise could have been catastrophic, leading to loss of an asset to the IAF and collateral damage to civilian property.

For an act of exceptional courage, displaying indomitable valour and exemplary gallantry beyond call of duty, Flight Lieutenant Aman Singh Hans is awarded with ‘Shaurya Chakra’.

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