“Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
On the 11th of July, 2020 we the students of Mushtifund Aryaan Higher Secondary School had a wonderful opportunity to interact with one of the finest test pilots in the world, Wing Commander P. Ashoka. Our very own director, Mr. Vyankatesh Prabhudesai had worked for him for about 3 years on flight experiments for HANSA and LCRA and described him as the calmest, coolest and the most ‘non-aggressive’ fighter pilot he had ever come across. Wing Commander P Ashoka sir was the former chief test pilot at HAL(Hindustan Aeronautical Ltd.), Kanpur, Nasik and Bangalore; a reputed Emeritus Scientist as well as a proficient fighter and test pilot at NAL.
Born in Indore, Wing commander P Ashoka was admitted to the highly reputed National Defence Academy at Dehradun in 1915. After 2 years of immense training there, he joined the Airforce Academy, Belgaon. In 1963 he joined the prestigious Empire Test Pilot School,UK. He worked as the chief test pilot at HAL,Kanpur and joined the National Aeronautical Laboratory (NAL), Bengaluru after retirement from HAL. At the time of retirement in October 2002,at the age of 68, he was a proud holder of a numerous awards for his tremendous contribution in the field of aeronautics and was aptly described as a ‘Legend’ by VPD sir.
Wing commander P Ashoka started the interaction by answering a very pertinent question regarding the difference between fighter and test pilots. The common traits required in both are discipline, ability to take decisions quickly, the ability to overcome your fears and the most importantly, courage. A fighter pilot needs to be aggressive to combat the enemy planes and requires a lot of mental strength, while the job of a test pilot is more analytical. He also shed some light on his experience of flying HANSA and highlighted the importance of having all the information about the plane before attempting to ‘take-off’. The pilot must make sure that everything is working properly on ground itself and rectify all problems beforehand. He emphasized that ‘getting a feel of all the controls’ to get a precise response quickly was a notable aspect of flying an aircraft. He also emphasized that physical built and mental strength are the necessary traits of a fighter pilot or else it is possible for one to ‘black out’. Physical fitness is an essential aspect of adapting to G suits worn by aviators. Higher fitness levels help the pilot to become accustomed to higher values of ‘G’.
Wing commander P Ashoka then went on to describe his marvelous experience at the NDA training course at Dehradun. The important feature of this course was that it included training for Army, Navy as well as Air force. Although he didn’t get the opportunity to fly an aircraft there, this experience helped him to build up his character and made him learn the significance of a good disciplined lifestyle. He then described his experience at the Test Pilots Course in the UK where he got the opportunity to fly different aircrafts like transport aircrafts, supersonic aircrafts, Trainer and Fighter planes. He had to face a lot of unprecedented challenges there as it involved taking a lot of decisions independently. He even enthusiastically volunteered to participate in a parachuting exercise during the course and never shied away from trying out challenging activities.
Wing commander P Ashoka also affirmed that due to the technological advancements in recent times, the job of a pilot has become much easier today as compared to his tenure as a pilot. However, according to him the excessive use of computers to fly the aircrafts deprives the aviator of the satisfaction that he would have received while manually piloting the aircraft.
Then he was asked a very relevant question about what did he find more difficult : perfect formation or handling bad weather conditions. He promptly replied that perfect formation wasn’t as complicated as it seems. It comprises of one leader who leads the other pilots during the formation and requires a lot of confidence, practice and coordination between the pilots. He also informed us about the Pogachev Cobra Maneuver and said that it could be demonstrated by any test pilot if he is well trained and confident. He went on to describe the difficulties he faced while handling ‘Harrier’ aircraft and described the technicalities involved in vertical takeoff and landing.
As the session was nearing its end, Wing commander P Ashoka told us about the incident which had forced him to bail out for the first time in Kanpur,1960. While flying the relatively new NAT aircraft he attempted to do a ‘loop’. While doing this challenging task, the aircraft lost its speed due to gravity and got into a spin or auto rotation. To come out of this condition, the pilot is required to give some inputs but nothing seemed to happen for Wing commander P Ashoka at that instant. Finally he decided to bail out and was able to reach the ground safely, suffering minor injuries due to being dragged by the parachute.
At the end of the session he reminisced about his close bond with Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma and lauded him as a brilliant pilot who was extremely dedicated, intelligent and physically fit. During the session we were also introduced to Mr. Lakshman Aragam, a close friend of VPD sir, an ardent aviator and as described by VPD sir a very good cook.
I would like to thank VPD sir for giving us these magnificent opportunities to interact with some of the top personalities from all over the world and arousing our interests in various disciplines like communication, aeronautics, medicine etc. Finally to quote the invaluable advice of Wing Commander Ashoka
‘You must conquer your fear. If something is bothering or worrying you, attempt it again and again till you know you can do it without the slightest hesitation. That’s the secret of being a successful human being’
Written by Sanskrati Saxena 11th Regular, MAHSS