The Blue Skies Podcast
The Blue Skies Podcast is an unofficial podcast on the men, women, machines and operations of the Indian Air Force in particular and Indian military aviation in general. Every week, we'll put you in the cockpit with an experienced military aviator.
Episodes
81 episodes
SP Tyagi Part 4: Inducting the Jaguar into IAF Service
In the last and final part of our interview with Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi, we discuss his experiences inducting the Jaguar into IAF service. We also discuss his role in the repatriation of Flt. Lt. Nachiketa, during the Kargil War.
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Season 2
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Episode 22
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1:05:05
SP Tyagi Part 3: Jaguar Conversion
In Part 3 of our interview with Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi, we discuss his experiences training with the Royal Air Force on the Jaguar Aircraft. He was among the first batch of 12 pilots to be trained on that deep penetration strike aircraft. L...
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Season 2
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Episode 21
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1:00:50
SP Tyagi Part 2: Becoming a Top Gun and 1971 War
In Part 2 of this 3-part interview with former Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi, we discuss the inter-war years, when he become a Pilot Attack Instructor, Instructor in the PAI school, participated in the 1971 War for the Liberati...
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Season 2
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Episode 20
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49:36
SP Tyagi Part 1: From Joining to the '65 War
Former Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi, PVSM, AVSM, VM, joins us for a series of interviews on his career and experiences. In Part 1, we speak about his initial journey into the Air Force, and experiences flying Hunters in a fron...
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Season 2
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Episode 19
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33:53
Samir Borade: Maintaining and upgrading the MiG-29 Fulcrum
This week's guest, AVM Samir Borade, VSM, speaks about the technical branch in the Indian Air Force. We learn about first, second, third and fourth line servicing, the MiG-29 Upgrade program, technical branch and flight safety, and the challeng...
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Season 2
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Episode 18
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1:22:27
What is courage? Harish Masand on AB Devayya
This episode is a narration of an article written by Air Mshl Harish Masand, himself a veteran of the 1971 War where he shot down a Sabre, on what might have transpired in AB Devayya's final sortie.
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Season 2
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Episode 16
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14:25
AB Devayya - Unraveling the mystery
In this episode, aviation historian PVS Jagan Mohan joins me and we make an attempt to unravel the mystery behind the death of Sqn. Ldr. AB Devayya, MVC (Posthumous) on 7th Sept, 1965. The episodes includes interviews with officers who served w...
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Season 2
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Episode 16
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56:41
SS Krishnamurthy: Witnessing the Dacca surrender and other flying experiences
This week we speak to Wg. Cdr. SS Krishnamurthy, who is the young flying officer peering over Maj. Gen. JFR Jacob's shoulder in that iconic photograph of the surrender of Pakistan's Army in Dacca in December 1971. He talks of that experience, f...
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Season 2
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Episode 15
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58:32
Anil Khosla: Doklam, Balakot and the Future of Air War
In this episode, we speak to Air Mshl Anil Khosla, who recently retired as Vice Chief of Air Staff. Besides his experiences as a young officer, we focus on the role he played in the Doklam stand-off (when he was C-in-C Eastern Air Command) and ...
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Season 2
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Episode 14
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1:00:00
BS Siwach: VIP Helicopter operations and Op Khukri in Africa
In this weekend's episode, we speak to Air Cmde BS Siwach about a daring rescue from Mt. Nunkun, flying helicopters in the North East, VIP flying and most importantly, his role as the Air Force commander of the UN forces in Sierra Leone during ...
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Season 2
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Episode 14
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1:26:43
Anchit Gupta: How we got here: the IAF organization at independence
Guest host and aviation historian Anchit Gupta takes us through the organization of the Air Forces in India prior to Independence.
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Season 2
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Episode 13
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35:41
Anil Kumar Ghosh: Understanding the SA-2 Dvina
In this interview we change gears to understand now a Surface to Air Missile (SAM) or Surface to Air Guided Weapon (SAGW) works. In an interview with a past guest of the program, Gp. Capt. Anil Kumar ("Toots") Ghosh, who commanded an SA-2 Dvina...
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Season 2
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Episode 12
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58:37
BD Jayal Part 2: Lessons from Command
In Part 2 of the 2-part interview with Air Marshal BD Jayal, we discuss his leading the Jaguar Project Team (JPT) in the UK, how the IAF anticipates equipment requirements and plans for it, and what should be done about the threat environment i...
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Season 2
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Episode 11
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37:07
BD Jayal Part 1: From a cadet to one of India's first MiG-21 pilots
This week's interview is Part 1 of a 2-part interview with a legend of the IAF, Air Marshal BD Jayal. From a Tiger Moth to Mirage 2000 and everything in between, Air Marshal Jayal has flown it, 77 types and 4,200 hours, in fact. In Part 1 we di...
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Season 2
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Episode 10
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1:04:57
Jai Singh Gahlawat: 1971 Vir Chakra Awardee, A1 instructor
This week's interview features Wg. Cdr. Jai Singh Gahlawat, who saw action flying Hunters during the 1971 War for the Liberation Bangladesh, for which he was awarded a Vir Chakra. In great detail, he takes us with him as he mounts attacks deep ...
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Season 2
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Episode 9
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1:10:59
Sunil Palkar: Navigating to the Tangail Paradrop
This episode features an interview with Gp. Capt. Sunil Palkar (Retd.), who was a Navigator on AN-12 aircraft during the 1971 war with Bangladesh and was in the lead aircraft for the famous Tangail paradrop. In addition to that mission, we disc...
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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1:04:12
PVS Jagan Mohan: Chronicler of the IAF
This week's episode features PVS Jagan Mohan, co-author of "The India-Pakistan Air War of 1965", "Eagles over Bangladesh" and "The Westland Wapiti in the Indian Air Force" and others. He is also a pillar of the IAF section of the Bharat Rakshak...
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Season 2
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Episode 7
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57:51
Namrita Chandi: Pioneering military aviatrix
In this episode, we speak to Wg. Cdr. Namrita Chandi, who was among the first few batches of lady officers commissioned into the flying branch. Over 15 years in uniform, she flew over 2,000 hours in Chetaks and Cheetahs from the heights of Siac...
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Season 2
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Episode 6
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49:19
Anil Kumar Ghosh - Experiences with IPKF in Sri Lanka
On 29 July, 1987, India first inducted troops into Sri Lanka as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). Almost exactly 35 years later, we interview Gp. Capt Anil Kumar "Toots" Ghosh, who served two tenures as Base Commander as part of th...
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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1:00:07
Sunil Nanodkar - Part 2: Jaguars in Cope Thunder, Alaska
In this episode we return to a former guest, AVM Sunil Nanodkar, and do a deep dive into the first time the IAF participated in an exercise with friendly forces in the US, Cope Thunder, in Alaska. We understand what is meant by trail planning, ...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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1:23:17
HN Bhagwat: Pioneer of low altitude para jumping
In this episode, we interview Air Marshal HN Bhagwat, PVSM, AVSM, VM (Retd)., a pioneer of low-altitude Para Jumping in the Indian Air Force. We speak about his initial career as an ATC Officer, Para jumping, the Akash Ganga skydiving team, and...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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1:00:23
CD Upadhyay - Mi-8s in Sri Lanka, Test Flying the ALH Dhruv
This week we interview star helicopter test pilot, Wg Cdr. CD Upadhyay, Vr. C. Wg. Cdr. Upadhyay saw action flying Mi-8s in support of the army during Op Pawan in Sri Lanka, for which he was awarded a Vr. C. He was als...
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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1:10:37
K Nachiketa: Flame out and ejection in Kargil
Welcome to Season 2! We begin this season with a bang, interviewing Gp. Capt. K. Nachiketa, who had a flame out in his MiG-27 while conducting a rocket attack on Pakistani positions during the Kargil conflict. He ejected from his aircraft and u...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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1:02:22
Kedar Karmakar, Angad Singh and Sanjay Simha: Aviation photography
In this episode, we interview three well-known aviation photographers on their experiences and some secrets of capturing good military aviation photographs. Kedar Karmakar, based in CaliforniaAngad Singh, based in Delh...
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Season 1
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Episode 58
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1:05:29
KS Sree Kumar: History of the early days of the IAF
In this episode, we interview amateur IAF historian and author KS Sreekumar Nair. "Sree" wrote "The Forgotten Few: The Indian Air Force's Contribution in the Second World War" which was published by Harper Collins in 2019, and has just recently...
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Season 1
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Episode 57
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1:33:10