Despite repeated invitations, Krishan Chander Nandal and his wife Usha Rani never visited their son, Flying Officer Pankaj Nandal, after he got posted to the Air Force Station at Sulur in Tamil Nadu.
“It is near Udhagamandalam. He kept asking us to come there, but we said we would visit him after he got married in November. We were planning a family vacation after the wedding,” Mr. Krishan Nandal said on Tuesday, five days since a plane piloted by his son went missing on its way from Chennai to Port Blair.
Footsteps of his father
An-32, the Air Force transport plane with 29 people on board, has been missing since it left Chennai on the morning of July 22.
The 25-year-old Flying Officer was one of the pilots. Following in the footsteps of his father, a retired Junior Warrant Officer of the Air Force, Mr. Pankaj Nandal joined the Air Force in January 2015 and was posted with the 33rd Squadron at Air Force Station, Sulur.
No results yet
Surrounded by friends and family at their Rohtak residence, the Nandals said they remained hopeful that the pilot would return home, though search and rescue operations have not yielded any results so far.
“We are hoping for a miracle. We won’t lose hope till something is found. I understand that planes and technology have their limits. I request the authorities to take international help if possible, since An-32 is a Russian-made plane,” said Mr. Krishan Nandal.
Wedding arrangements
His son had last been home in January, when arrangements for his wedding to a Rohtak-based woman had been finalised, said Mr. Krishan Nandal.
“He was to come home on leave starting November 5. The wedding was to be held on November 30. The banquet hall has been booked and both families have been preparing for the wedding. Now, we don’t know what will happen.”
Meanwhile, the younger brother, Vipul, has decided to follow in the footsteps of his brother.
Having completed his Class XII exams this year, Vipul had wanted to join Merchant Navy.
“My brother and I had decided when we were quite young that one of us should join the Air Force as we were inspired by our father. After he got selected, I thought I would join the Merchant Navy. But now, if anything happens, I will try to join the Air Force,” he said.
Vipul, who is preparing for the National Defence Academy examinations, said it would be an “honour to serve the country” irrespective of the fate of his brother’s plane.
While they haven’t given up hope, the family said: “It would be a great loss… not just for me, but for the country as well.”
He was supposed to get married on November 30. The banquet hall has been booked... We
are hoping for a miracle. We won’t lose hope till something is foundKrishan Chander Nandal,Father of Pankaj Nandal
