Suranjan Das Road
Road
Name: Suranjan Das Road named after
Road Location: Puttapa Layout
Famous
for/ Contributions to society:
Detailed
Description:
Suranjan Das may not have made himself famous among the citizens but he
surely did justice to his country. Group .Captain .Suranjan Das’ name will
always stand for excellence in the profession of test flying and will always be
an inspiration to all those who wish to make use of their life to quench the
country.
Suranjan Das was a shining test flying pilot in the IAF. He first joined
the Indian royal air force where he volunteered in World War II. He was one
among the very few pilots who were chosen and sent to Empire Test Pilots School
[ETPS] to test pilot for IAF. He also commanded the Halwara Air Force Station
Base and was the director of the Aircraft & Armament Testing Group of the
Indian Air Force [1969] until his death.
They all said he was a boy whose eyes will always gaze upwards. Despite
his passion towards flying and his wanting to become a pilot, Suranjan Das was
forced to take up engineering. “You can never keep a good man down” they say,
surely, Suranjan Das got his turn when World War II came around as he
volunteered and was selected as a
trainee pilot for the Royal Indian Air Force. He learnt to fly in Canada and
was admitted into RIAF in 1943.
Suranjan Das joined the No.8 fighter bomber squadron and was remembered to
be a bit ropey about close formation. His engineering talent was used to solve
technical problems which the squadron’s tech team could not solve!!! ‘A man of many mysteries’ …….. Wasn’t he?
1949 was the water shed for the aviation industry in India. That was the
time when Dr.VM. Ghatage started design work in Hindustan Aircraft Limited
[HAL] on Hindustan Trainer - 2 [HT-2]. That was when the IAF felt a need for
their two best test pilots to go to ETPS (in UK) so, Suranjan Das and Roshan
Lal Suri were sent.
The IAF acquired Ouragans, named Toofani in India, from
France. The first 75 dismantled aircraft were brought to Bombay. These were taken
to an allotted area at Santa Cruz airfield, which was the home of the Aircraft
Erection Unit (AEU) - the first such venture by IAF.
In 1953-54 this unit was commanded by Suranjan Das and
proceeded to test each aircraft and clear it as it got ready. Other pilots of
AEU who assisted in the flying effort remember the commander as fun loving and
yet always managed to conduct the flight tests to be of the expected standards.
IAF then
decided to go in for the Gnat, at the time Sqn.Ldr Das was attached to Follands
at Chilbolton in England. During his
term at Follands, Das took a very active part in the development of the
aircraft. He also became the first Indian to demonstrate any aircraft at the
Farnborough Air Show.
Once
while practicing for the air show, he was doing an eight-point roll in the Gnat
close to the ground. He then suddenly
felt a restriction in the aileron control. His first reaction was to start
talking on the radio. He asked the Air Traffic Control to ensure that his
comments were recorded just in case he could not recover. He said that these
could help prevent a recurrence of the problem. The Orpheus engine, which
powered the Gnat, had a strong tendency to flame out due to surge at high
altitudes and the associated low temperatures. This was a serious behavior to
be addressed to immediately.
Suranjan das was also
responsible for the successful maiden flight of the HT-24 on 24th June
1961. This aircraft served IAF in the 1971 Bangladesh war.
Das out
of his many test flying ventures in his tenure also did the first flight of the
HJT-16 (Kiran) on September 4, 1964……….. This man’s astounding career
came to a shocking end on 10th January 1970, because of a fatal crash of the HT-24 ,Mk 1R prototype.
The
least which could be done was administered as the 1R prototype was also killed.
Also, a road in Bangalore connecting HAL's
main Complex to the Engine Division also commemorates him. HAL instituted a
trophy in his name for the best test pilot trainee graduating in India each
year. He was also awarded the Padma Vibhushan posthumously.
Contributed by: Yeshaswini. R, 8-D,
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suranjan_Das
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