101 IAF pilots have applied for early retirement: Antony

Quickgun Murugan

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101 IAF pilots have applied for early retirement: Antony - India - The Times of India

NEW DELHI: Government on Wednesday said 101 Indian Air Force pilots have applied for premature retirement citing suppression, lack of career progression, medical and compassionate grounds as the reasons.

"Around 101 pilots of the IAF have applied for the grant of premature retirement during the last one year," Defence minister A K Antony said in a written reply to a query in the Rajya Sabha.

"The broad reasons furnished by applicants for grant of premature retirement are suppression, lack of career progression, medical and compassionate (grounds) etc," he said.

The minister said the IAF considers these applications on-case-to-case basis in accordance with the existing government policies.

He added that the IAF was taking several steps such as advertising in print and electronic media, motivational lectures in schools and participation career fairs to reach out to youth across the country.

Replying to another query, the minister said IAF had lost 13 aircraft in different crashes during the year.

The list includes an An-32 transport aircraft, three MIG 27s, three MiG 21s, two Su-30MKIs in Jaisalmer, one each Mi-17 and Mi-8 along with two trainer aircraft.
 

ppgj

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this is indeed worrying. india is inducting su 30 mki in large numbers which is 2 seater aircraft. this will impinge on the pilot availability for these machines as also the transport fleet. also to be noted is FGFA which is a 2 seater.
 

sob

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This is indeed worrying. The nation spends a large amount of money training the pilots and to lose them like this is indeed a serious matter.

In recent times with the pickup in economy, the salary levels of commercial pilots have increased substantially.They now get between 2-5 lakhs a month depending on experience. IAF cannot meet this salary level.


But other geniune concerns of the pilots should be addressed immediately. IMo the problem lies squarely with the attitude of the IAS officers at MOD. They have ensured that they are getting very high salary levels post the Pay commission but for others and in the armed forces the raise has been very modest. This omission was so glaring that even the Service Chiefs had to register their disapporval.
 

indian_blues

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Ridiculous, this would be demoralising for the young one's who joined IAF and surely the one who wants to join going to shy away from joining.

Raise the pay please.
 

bhramos

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2-5 lakhs salary is too heavy for IAF to pay. may be we should revise it, and other benifits should be given.
 

threadbrowser

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Given IAF accident rates and the various hints in the papers about poor maintenance standards and low morale, I dont think you can blame people for wanting to leave. I believe that 13 planes crashed this year alone
 

bhramos

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Given IAF accident rates and the various hints in the papers about poor maintenance standards and low morale, I dont think you can blame people for wanting to leave. I believe that 13 planes crashed this year alone
IAF has best maintenance around the World. so only we are able to operate the planes which are almost 50 years old or obsolete. we have Migs which have good operational record only in India then even in its own Russia. accidents are normal , as IAF operates different 20+ types of aircrafts in its inventory. as all fighters have different types of Fuel, ammunation, missiles and spares and different supply line and maintenance. its hard to maintain.
as compared to US or any other country take USAF
F-15,F-16,F-18...... almost all have simillar type Fuel,spares,missiles,....... so they are easy to maintain.
 

Quickgun Murugan

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IAF has best maintenance around the World. so only we are able to operate the planes which are almost 50 years old or obsolete. we have Migs which have good operational record only in India then even in its own Russia. accidents are normal , as IAF operates different 20+ types of aircrafts in its inventory. as all fighters have different types of Fuel, ammunation, missiles and spares and different supply line and maintenance. its hard to maintain.
as compared to US or any other country take USAF
F-15,F-16,F-18...... almost all have simillar type Fuel,spares,missiles,....... so they are easy to maintain.

Listen, no matter how good IAF is, these accidents and attrition rate of pilots is doing no good to its image.

Look at some of the news articles for last few weeks

8ak - Indian Defence News: Feature: 96 pilots killed in MiG fighter crashes over two years

8ak - Indian Defence News: Another Sukhoi-30MKI crashes, Pilots safe, planes grounded

8ak - Indian Defence News: Grounding of IL-76 leaves IAF jittery

8ak - Indian Defence News: MiG-27 crashes in W Bengal, pilot safe but 2 boys injured

Whether it is Plane maintenance problem or pilot error, either ways IAF is responsible.

Now with news like this of IAF pilots themselves trying for early retirement citing " no career growth" as a reason has serious consequences. How the hell is IAF going to convince the already skeptical future generation to join its force, when it is not able to convince 101 of its own pilots to continue?
 

NORMALINDIANCITIZEN

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I think we should go in for quality than quantity which has been our forte till now( albeit with Pakistan). If we reduce our no of planes, but buy only the best, we would need far lesser pilots. Now if we increase pay and perks to a large extent we could have good quality intake and retain them too. We would also end up with a leaner and a meaner airforce and that too and very less or no extra cost to the exchequer...... what do you think?:dfi-1:
 

thakur_ritesh

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nothing new there its been happening for quite some time, the armed forces cant find enough quality volunteers and those who do join seem keen to leave for a much better paying job in he corporate world.

money is a clear demotivater but then the way it takes ages to grow in a career is also as frustrating and even if someone has certain very good and dynamic capabilities will still have to go though the process which i am sure adds to the frustrations of the individual.

it is but natural he will compare himself to his contemporary in the corporate and the way the other guy would flaunt his way of life, the job profile he handles, the career graph he has had, the kind of money he mints, etc and all such things certainly do not argue well for someone who is as passionate to have all such things happening with him as well.

attrition will happen, certain good people will move else where and make a better living for themselves. until and unless something drastic is done the trend is bound to continue.
 

bengalraider

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The GOI should make all wannabe IAF pilots sign a 10 yr bond before inducting them, this way we can at least get some monetary returns on the training.
 

proud_hindustani

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This is indeed worrying. The nation spends a large amount of money training the pilots and to lose them like this is indeed a serious matter.

In recent times with the pickup in economy, the salary levels of commercial pilots have increased substantially.They now get between 2-5 lakhs a month depending on experience. IAF cannot meet this salary level.


But other geniune concerns of the pilots should be addressed immediately. IMo the problem lies squarely with the attitude of the IAS officers at MOD. They have ensured that they are getting very high salary levels post the Pay commission but for others and in the armed forces the raise has been very modest. This omission was so glaring that even the Service Chiefs had to register their disapporval.
2-5 lakhs monthly salary is pretty good to lead a good life in India. Why do they want higher salary? Are they paying too much taxes + property tax which lessens their amount of salary?

if yes, I think the better solution is to eliminate tax + property tax for all mililtary related people. they put their life at risk to serve / protect our country. Can't Indian government do such things??? I think the public in India should not have any problem on elimination of taxes for all military related people, knowing that military job is a tough and risky job!
 

IBM

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what you can expect from IAF pilots, where you have ageing fleet,corruption,low pay,lack of good trainers and delay in modernisation. God save the IAF
 

StealthSniper

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what you can expect from IAF pilots, where you have ageing fleet,corruption,low pay,lack of good trainers and delay in modernisation. God save the IAF

Unfortunately I agree with you. India needs to wake up and be more proactive with things. These corrupt politicians think for themselves first rather then the people, and we need to fix our corrupt system and be more organized and structured so little things that crop up be fixed fast and efficently.


I think the pay has to do with the problems but also the older airframes and crashes that are happening. If I were a pilot I would be wondering why the heck the Mig-21 is still going when every airforce in the world isn't using it. On top of that why the delay on the LCA and decent trainers for the airforce. If I were a pilot I think I would sense that the airforce doesn't put the extra effort for the pilots that fly these planes.
 

AJSINGH

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what you can expect from IAF pilots, where you have ageing fleet,corruption,low pay,lack of good trainers and delay in modernisation. God save the IAF
do not balme the IAF for that ,for example IAF palced orders for advance jet trainers way back in 1980s ,whereas the hawks have arived just last year
it is the successive GOI which has let indian armed forces down
one more example ,when 6th pay commision was ebing disscussed ,there was no representation from Indian armed forces the commitee ,those good for nothing,double crossing civil servents do not know ,how difficult the life is
 

thakur_ritesh

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i don’t think it is completely justified to put a blame on the political class alone, someone who has seen the way the government functions will without a doubt put a finger on the bureaucracy where the very strong lobby of the ias officers makes sure at no level do their contemporaries in the armed forces or else where get past them in the kind of money they might draw or the benefits they might enjoy.

even if you have a politician who would like to do something about the issue will be mowed down by these people by sighting “n” number of rules and regulations, procedures, recommendations, reports, that the concerned politician would wonder why did he in the first place ask for all such hikes for his soldiers.

pay scales of indian army - CDS Exam 2010 Pay Scale Combined Defence Services Examination I

if the pay scales are to be taken into account, it a mockery to say the least the way it has been done up. compare the salary the top generals enjoy to a class 12 pass out with 6 months aviation course and a commercial pilot license and with a work experience with any airline for over a year, and it is highly likely the young lad would be doing as much as the general or better than him.

there are other benefits which indeed cant be compared which add a big punch, along comes the thrill and the honor of serving the nation at its utopian best, but still like for most of us money does its own talking and probably in times it does become priority number one for the guys in the armed forces and as i said this is not just about money, there also remain a lot of in-service frustrations, which forces people to look for an exit.
 

p2prada

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The GOI should make all wannabe IAF pilots sign a 10 yr bond before inducting them, this way we can at least get some monetary returns on the training.
You need to be permanently commissioned to fly fighters in the IAF. All the pilots retiring early are senior pilots with very little future of promotions. So, it is expected they retire early. Nobody can leave the IAF before 10 years. Most of these pilots will have finished their flying careers anyways. So, its no big deal. They can only continue to fly in Civilian airplanes now.

The media is trying to sensationalize the news. Nothing new.

None of this has to do with pay. Only promotions. No fighter jock likes a desk job. So, they simply find new places to continue flying.
 

Sridhar

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Reduction in voluntary retirements of IAF fighter pilots: Centre

New Delhi, Wed, 16 Dec 2009 ANI

New Delhi, Dec 16 (ANI): Defence Minister A K Antony on Wednesday said in the Rajya Sabha that the Indian Air Force (IAF) has seen reduction in the numbers of pilots applying for early retirement.
In a written reply Antony revealed that only one IAF pilot applied for resignation in current year till December.

A total of nine pilots applied before the commission of resignation in 2007 while in 2008 four pilots sought early retirement from the service.
Antony also expressed confidence that: "The present strength of pilots in Air Force is sufficient to meet its current operational requirements."
"The improvement in the job profile of the pilots is a continuous process keeping in view the job specific requirements and operational necessity. Besides, the Short Service Commission (SSC) for flying branch has been modified to also make men eligible for induction in this branch," Antony stated in his reply.
Antony, further stated that the implementation of the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission shall also go a long way in attracting youth.
Replying to another question Antony assured members that the weapon systems such as Harpy missile purchased from Israel, anti sea-eagle missile, anti-radiation missiles and some types of cluster bombs are in a high state of serviceability and all efforts are made to maintain these systems.
"After the expiry of assigned life by original equipment manufacturer and non feasibility of getting further extensions due to obsolescence of technology, these weapons are systematically with the approval of designated IAF agencies," Antony said through his written reply. (ANI)

Reduction in voluntary retirements of IAF fighter pilots: Centre
 

Quickgun Murugan

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Reduction in voluntary retirements of IAF fighter pilots: Centre

New Delhi, Wed, 16 Dec 2009 ANI

New Delhi, Dec 16 (ANI): Defence Minister A K Antony on Wednesday said in the Rajya Sabha that the Indian Air Force (IAF) has seen reduction in the numbers of pilots applying for early retirement.
In a written reply Antony revealed that only one IAF pilot applied for resignation in current year till December.

A total of nine pilots applied before the commission of resignation in 2007 while in 2008 four pilots sought early retirement from the service.
Antony also expressed confidence that: "The present strength of pilots in Air Force is sufficient to meet its current operational requirements."
"The improvement in the job profile of the pilots is a continuous process keeping in view the job specific requirements and operational necessity. Besides, the Short Service Commission (SSC) for flying branch has been modified to also make men eligible for induction in this branch," Antony stated in his reply.
Antony, further stated that the implementation of the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission shall also go a long way in attracting youth.
Replying to another question Antony assured members that the weapon systems such as Harpy missile purchased from Israel, anti sea-eagle missile, anti-radiation missiles and some types of cluster bombs are in a high state of serviceability and all efforts are made to maintain these systems.
"After the expiry of assigned life by original equipment manufacturer and non feasibility of getting further extensions due to obsolescence of technology, these weapons are systematically with the approval of designated IAF agencies," Antony said through his written reply. (ANI)

Reduction in voluntary retirements of IAF fighter pilots: Centre
Then is 101 pilots early retirement news false?
 

Quickgun Murugan

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Youth opting out of corporate jobs for IAF: Antony

Youth opting out of corporate jobs for IAF: Antony - India - The Times of India


HYDERABAD: Defence minister A K Antony said more and more youth were joining the Indian Air Force after opting out of corporate jobs, indicating willingness and a change in GenNext.

"As many as 40 engineers have left corporate jobs and joined the Indian Air Force this year and the situation indicates changing trends among youth," Antony, who was the chief guest at the passing out parade of 175 combined graduates of IAF in Dundigal Airforce station, told reporters.

Also, the number of women flying officers in the IAF has gone up to 37 as against 20 last year, he said adding six were given pilot training and rest of the women officers were allotted ground duty or administration jobs in the force.

After inspecting guard of honour from new-commissioned officers, Antony said aerospace power has been undergoing many changes and the officers should be geared up to acquire the knowledge of application and exploit it to the optimum.

"The security environment in the region has necessitated the induction of sophisticated and costly equipment in our armed forces. The onus will be on all of you to handle them with care and efficiency," Antony told the officers.

Of the total 175 who graduated today, 105 cadets were trained as pilots, 12 were trained as navigators and 58 were given administration, Air Traffic Control, Accounts and other branches. Air marshal V R Iyer was also present during the function.
 

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