Chennai, May 6
Former Vice Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal PM Ramachandran, died here on Thursday following a brief illness.
He is survived by his son, daughter-in-law and two grandsons.
Ramachandran (86) will be cremated with full military honours on Friday, according to a release here.
He was commissioned as a fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force in 1955 and participated in the Liberation of Goa six years later where he destroyed a Portuguese patrol boat and was awarded the gallantry award Shaurya Chakra.
He held various command and staff appointments in his about four-decade old career and as Vice Chief, was “responsible for the operational deployment of India’s short range ballistic missile, Prithvi,” the release said. PTI
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