The newly commissioned officers were then administered the ‘oath’ by the Commandant of the Academy in the presence of the Reviewing Officer and other dignitaries. During the Ceremonial Salute and ‘Antim Pag’ (Last Step), a well coordinated and synchronised fly past by Pilatus PC-7, Hawk and Kiran trainer aircraft and Chetak helicopters added colour to the occasion. Many other events, which would otherwise have been part of this Combined Graduation Parade, were cut down as a mark of respect for the CDS, Mrs Rawat and 12 personnel of the Armed Forces who passed away in the recent air accident.

After the ‘Pipping Ceremony’ the Reviewing Officer gave away various awards to the Flying Officers who excelled in diverse training disciplines. Flying Officer Shashwat Bhardwaj from the Flying Branch was awarded the President’s Plaque and the Chief of the Air Staff Sword of Honour for standing first in overall order of merit in the Pilots’ Course. Flying Officer Shrikant Mishra from the Navigation Branch was awarded the President’s Plaque for being first in the overall order of merit in the Navigation Course and Flying Officer Astha Kaur was awarded the President’s Plaque for being first in the overall order of merit in the Ground Duty Officers’ Course.