That's Mushkoh Valley. Being bombed by IAF jets during Kargil, 1999. Photo taken from a Chetak Helicopter of 132 FAC Flt, which turns 40 today. To understand why this unit matters, you need to understand a problem that plagued air forces since the WWI. As aircraft got faster, pilots had less and less time to identify targets on the ground. Pre-flight briefings on enemy positions were often obsolete by the time jets arrived as front lines shifted too quickly. And last-minute inputs from ground troops were of limited use, because soldiers and pilots simply didn't speak the same language. At those speeds, precision was everything. The answer was to place trained pilots on the ground, and later in the air, to guide strike aircraft during Close Air Support missions. "Forward Air Controllers". It was a game changer. CAS missions grew from fewer than 10% in WW2, to 20-30% in Vietnam, to over 30% in Afghanistan and Iraq. India felt this difference acutely. FACs transformed CAS effectiveness in 1971, and the contrast with 1965 was impossible to ignore. Post-1971, the IAF formalised the FAC role, establishing airborne FAC flights using Cheetak/Chetah helicopters through regular joint exercises with the Army. 131 FAC Flt was the first, raised in 1974 on Bell Helicopters, later moving to Chetak and to Udhampur. 132 FAC Flt followed on 24 Feb 1986, eventually replacing 131 at Udhampur and it was from there that this unit went to war in Kargil. Their methods were innovative and their courage remarkable. Flying within enemy missile range, they used coloured smoke from artillery fire to mark targets, carrying Air Observation Post pilots onboard to direct fire. Their airborne FAC operations in Drass, Batalik and Mushkoh were instrumental in directing the fighter strikes on Tololing and Tiger Hill. Every mission demanded meticulous planning just to minimise exposure to enemy fire. The unit earned 1 Vayu Sena Medal and 4 Mentions-in-Despatches for their efforts. 132 FAC Flt is also where Flying Officers Gunjan Saxena and Sreevidya Ranjan made history becoming the first two female pilots to operate in a combat zone in the IAF. The IAF did go on to raise 133, 134 and 135 FAC Flts in the years that followed, but all were merged or disbanded by 1997. The use case for dedicated FAC flights has diminished in the modern era, and these units have since been repurposed to other roles. An era, quietly closed. But on this day, it's worth remembering what these units built and what 132 FAC Flt, in particular, achieved over the peaks of Kargil. Happy Raising Day. Pic Credits: Gp Capt Arjun Sen #IAFHistory @IAF_MCC