States » SouthPosted at: Sep 26 2026 4:24PM


54 pilots from Indian Defence forces and three from friendly foreign countries pass out of FIS at IAF Station Tambaram

Chennai, Sep 26 (UNI) A total of 54 pilots from the Defence Forces and three from abroad graduated from the Flying Instructors' School (FIS) at the Indian Air Force Station Tambaram on Friday.
Air Marshal George Thomas, Air Officer Commanding- in-Chief, Western Air Command, was the Reviewing Officer (RO) for the event, a defence statement said here today.
The pilots belonged to the No-161 batch Qualified Flying Instructors' Course (QFIC). The pilots who qualified as flying instructors included 42 from the Indian Air Force, seven from the Indian Navy, three from the Indian Army and two from the Indian Coast Guard.
In addition, three pilots from friendly foreign countries also successfully completed their training and graduated.
The course commenced on April 13, 2026. The graduation ceremony marked the culmination of 24 weeks of rigorous training, which encompassed 10 phases of flying training and over 200 hours of ground training. Graduates of the course were awarded with the coveted symbol of 'Qualified Flying Instructor'.
The pilots who achieved distinction in flying and ground subjects were awarded the trophies by the RO. The prestigious Majithia Trophy for the officer standing first in Overall Order of Merit was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Bopanna.A.A, the Arjan Singh Trophy for Best in Fixed Wing Flying was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Shivkumar Bhatkare, the Arjan Singh Trophy for Best in Rotary Wing Flying was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Saumya Sharma, the Nirmal Jeet Singh Sekhon Trophy for standing first in Aerobatics was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Bijo Anton, the Dilbagh Trophy for standing first in Instructional Technique was awarded to Lt.Commander Parth Deshpande, Subroto Mukherjee Trophy for standing first in Ground Subjects was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Amol Garg, the Mehar Singh Trophy for standing second in
Overall Order of Merit was awarded to Sqn.Ldr Avani Chaturvedi.
In his address, the Reviewing Officer congratulated the graduates and award winners and extolled them to ensure that the trainees they train, pass out as confident and professional pilots ready in all respect for their service in IAF.
UNI GV 1620
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