Wing Commander Manish Singh, the IAF pilot from UP's Ballia, who flew one of the Rafale fighters from France to India

It was a moment of extraordinary pride for seven Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots who brought the first batch of five Rafale fighter aircraft to India from France on Wednesday (July 29). Minutes after landing at Ambala Air Force Station, the seven pilots were welcomed by the Air Force chief Air Marshal RKS Bhadauria.

The pilots include Group Captain Harkirat Singh who is the Commanding Officer of the 17 squadron, Wing Commander Manish Singh, Group captain R Kataria, Wing Commander Abhishek Tripathi, Wing Commander Siddhu and Wing Commander Arun.

As the Rafale jets landed in Ambala, people of Bakwa village in Ballia district of Uttar Pradesh erupted in joy as Wing Commander Manish Singh belongs to this village.
Manish's father, Madan Singh, is a retired army jawan.

Wing Commander Singh got his early education at a private school in the village and after studying in the village till Class IV, he went to the Sainik School in Karnal. Wing Commander Singh joined the IAF and was posted in Gorakhpur in 2017-18. After the government finalised Rafale deal with France, Wing Commander Singh was selected by the IAF to go to France for training.

Wing Commander Manish Singh has once again proved that talent is not dependent on facilities as he comes from a remote village but has achieved great heights by flying a fighter plane like Rafale.