INAS 300

INAS 300
INAS 300 Insignia
Active	7 July 1960 - Present[1]
Country	India
Branch	Indian Navy
Garrison/HQ	INS Hansa
Nickname(s)	The White Tigers[2]
Aircraft flown
Fighter	Hawker Sea Hawk(historical) BAE Sea Harrier(Retired)[3] MiG-29KUB(current)[4]

The INAS 300 is an Indian naval air squadron based at INS Hansa.^[2][3]

History

The White Tigers were commissioned on 7 July 1960 at RNAS Brawdy, United Kingdom. The, then, Indian High Commissioner to UK, Mrs Vijay Laxmi Pandit, graced the occasion. The Commissioning Warrant was read out by Lt Cdr B D Law, the first Squadron Commander. The squadron was initially equipped with the Hawker Sea Hawk aircraft. On 18 May 1961, history was created when Lt Cdr R H Tahiliani carried out the first deck landing on INS Vikrant on Sea Hawk IN 156. The squadron left RNAS Brawdy on 31 July 1961 with eleven Hawker Sea Hawks and embarked INS Vikrant off the Isle of Wright. During the course of the next ten years the Indian Navy inducted fifty-four Sea Hawks in a phased manner, the last aircraft being delivered in December 1971.^[5]

INAS 300 acquired MiG-29Ks on 11 May.

The Sea Harriers were replaced by MiG-29KUBs after they were retired on the morning of 11 may, 2016 in a ceremony held at INS Hansa.^[4]

References

1. "Indian Naval Air Squadron (INAS) 300". Global Security. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
2. "The White Tigers Go Golden" (PDF). Vayu Aerospace. 21 December 2010. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
3. "INAS 300 – The White Tigers". Indian Navy. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
4. "INAS 300 retires Harriers". Press Information Bureau. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
5. "SEA HARRIER | Indian Navy". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 6 May 2016.