Wife of pilot killed in Mirage 2000 crash to join IAF

Garima Abrol, wife of Squadron Leader Samir Abrol who was killed in Mirage 2000 fighter jet crash in February will be joining the Air Force Academy here at Dundigal. The news came in a tweet by Retired Air Marshall Anil Chopra. “Mrs Garima Abrol, wife of Sqn leader Samir Abrol who martyred in Mirage 2000 fighter plane crash while test flying it at HAL Airport. To join the Air Force Academy. Woman of exceptional substance and will join IAF. Not all woman are made equal some are Armed forces Wives,” Chopra tweeted.

Samir Abrol and Squadron Leader Siddartha Negi were killed when they were test flying the fighter jet at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Airport in Bengaluru on 1 February this year. They were conducting an acceptance sortie of the newly upgraded Mirage-2000 trainer. Despite their efforts to save themselves by ejecting, they were caught in the flames and died.

Following her husband’s tragic death, Garima expressed her anguish and wanted answers to her questions. “They are telling me there is a court of enquiry but we can’t keep on waiting. I want to know exactly want happened and how my husband died. I understand by the previous records that I have gone through, that nothing happens. I don’t want my husband to become another statistic” she said in an interview.

On her Facebook page, Garima wrote: “My husband was a proud Indian and I loved sending him off to serve the nation with a morning cup of tea and a head held high. Every soldier’s wife’s biggest fear in life is when her husband would be called to the frontline and serves in an active war. I too had this fear. Many times, I woke up crying after having one such bad dream… But Samir would hold me, console me and tell me… that is the ultimate purpose of his job. How many more of these pilots have to give up their life to shake you up and make you realize there is something really wrong in the system?”

A determined Garima who is a fitness instructor in Bengaluru wanted to have a firsthand experience of an IAF pilot, sat for the Services Selection Board (SSB) examination in Varanasi. She will be joining the IAF academy here by January to continue the legacy of her late husband.