Place of birth : Sultanpur, UP
Last Rank : Commander
Unit : INS Hansa
Arm/Regt : Indian Navy
Martyrdom : March 3, 2010
Commander Suresh K Maurya
Commander Suresh K Maurya hailed form Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh and was born in the year 1970. He was commissioned as a Sub Lieutenant in the Navy on 01 Jan 1993 at the age of 22 years. Cdr Maurya was very passionate about flying and was extremely happy when he got selected to be trained as fighter pilot in the Navy. After completing his rigorous training Cdr Maurya earned his wings and became a Naval fighter pilot in Jun 1996. Cdr Maurya besides being an ace pilot, was an excellent swimmer, cross country runner and a painter.
Cdr Maurya soon grew into a professionally competent pilot and gained enough experience and expertise to get inducted into the Naval Aerobatic team “Sagar Pawan”. The Indian Navy aerobatic team Sagar Pawan was formed in 2003 at Dabolim Naval Air Station in Goa, and the team made its formal inaugural debut display (then with only three aircraft) in Kochi, on 11 May 2003 for the Golden Jubilee of the Indian Naval Aviation. The team also known as INSPAT - Indian Navy Sagar Pawan Aerobatic Team or SPAT, flew four HJT-16 Kiran Mk.II planes attached to INAS 551 Squadron based at at INS Hansa, Goa, painted in dark blue and white. The planes of SPAT used white, red and blue smokes.
Kiran Mk II Aircrash: 3rd Mar 2010
In March 2010 , the aerobatic team “Sagar Pawan”, was tasked to perform in an inaugural function of the India Aviation 2010 Air-show at Hyderabad. On 3 March 2010 one of the Sagar Pawan Kiran Mk. II planes being flown by Cdr Maurya and co-pilot Lt Cdr Rahul Nair crashed onto buildings, as they were doing manoeuvres during the show. The Sagar Pawan team was in its final action called ‘downward bomb bust manoeuvre' which would have taken the four aircraft in different directions. The accident occurred at Bowenpally area near Begumpet airport of Hyderabad . When all the four planes of the “Sagar Pawan” were performing ‘downward bomb burst’, formation, the aircraft being flown by Lt Cdr Nair and Cdr Maurya failed to pull up and crashed onto the buildings.
Both the pilots were experienced and competent flyers who had flown various operational missions before. In the final dive, the pilots either overshot the ‘dive limit' and could not pull up fast enough or the engine failed, making it impossible for them to control the aircraft. As they could not control the aircraft at the mission critical moment, it crashed on to the nearby buildings. Lt Cdr Nair managed to eject from the aircraft, but did not survive as the plane had come too close to the ground for a safe ejection. His parachute didn’t open up fully and got stuck in high tension electric wires, proving fatal for him. Cdr Maurya did not get time to eject and his body was found in the wreckage of the aircraft. Cdr Suresh K Maurya was an accomplished fighter pilot and a committed soldier, who laid down his life at the age of 39 years in the service of the nation.
Commander Suresh K Maurya is survived by his wife Smt Archana Maurya.
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