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Op Sindoor was launched on May 7 in retaliation for a terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22, carried out by The Resistance Front, a proxy of the Pakistan-based terror group LeT.
Indian Air Force pilot, Purvesh Duragkar and Sukhoi Su-30MKI.
Indian Air Force pilot, Purvesh Duragkar, who was killed on Thursday when his Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighter jet crashed in Assam’s Karbi Anglong, was part of Operation Sindoor and had met his family just 10 days ago. Op Sindoor was launched last year to avenge the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.
The 28-year-old flight lieutenant returned home to Nagpur, Maharashtra, ten days ago for a family gathering. Purvesh, did his schooling in Nagpur and was single.
While speaking to news agency PTI, his father Ravindra Duragkar said that the family initially did not know that he was part of Operation Sindoor.
“15 days after Operation Sindoor was paused did we get to know that he was part of the operation. He did not have his mobile phone with him during that time. We were not in touch with him during that time,” his father, a retired railway employee said.
“My son was extremely proud to be part of the Indian Air Force. He would sometimes share his experience of flying fighter planes and the speeds that IAF jets achieve. He held his colleagues in high regard,” Duragkar said.
He said Flight Lieutenant Purvesh took “immense pride” in flying a fighter jet. Originally posted at Tezpur in Assam, he was operating from Jorhat while maintenance work was underway on the Tezpur runway.
Flight Lieutenant Purvesh and Squadron Leader Anuj were on a training mission in a Su-30 MKI when the aircraft went missing shortly after taking off from Jorhat Airbase, roughly 60 km from the crash site, killing both pilots. Officials said communication with the Russian-made fighter was lost at 7:42 pm.
“My son sacrificed himself in the service of the nation. Everyone should take inspiration from him. He achieved his dream, but he could not serve the nation as much as he wanted to. He had a short tenure of 4 years,” he said.
Operation Sindoor was launched on May 7 in retaliation for a terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22, carried out by The Resistance Front, a proxy of the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
Indian security forces targeted multiple terror camps in Pakistan and PoK, eliminating over 100 militants. A ceasefire was announced on May 10.
Nagpur, India, India
March 06, 2026, 2:27 pm IST
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