Page 311 - SSB Interview: The Complete Guide, Second Edition

1941, No.1 Squadron remained the only squadron of the IAF, though
two more flights were added. There were only two branches in the Air

Force when it was formed, namely, the General Duties (GD) branch and

the Logistics branch.
World War II

81. During World War II, the red centre was removed from the IAF roundel
to eliminate confusion with the Japanese Hinomaru (“Rising Sun”)

emblem. The Air Force grew to seven squadrons in 1943 and to nine
squadrons in 1945, equipping with Vultee Vengeance dive bombers and

Hurricanes, along with a transport unit with the surviving AW 15

Atalantas until 1944. The IAF helped in blocking the advance of the
Japanese army in Burma, where its first air strike was on the Japanese

military base in Arakan. It also carried out strike missions against the
Japanese airbases at Mae Hong Son, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai in

northern Thailand. In recognition of the crucial role played by the IAF,

King George VI conferred it the prefix “Royal” in 1945. During the war,
many youth joined the Indian National Army. Forty-five of them

(known as the Tokyo Boys) were sent to train as fighter pilots at the

Imperial Japanese Air Force Academy in 1944 by Subhas Chandra Bose.
After the war, they were interned by the Allies and were court-

martialled. After Indian independence, some of them rejoined the IAF

for service.
Post-Independence

82. After gaining independence from the British Empire in 1947, British
India was partitioned into the new states of the Union of India and the

Dominion of Pakistan. Along the lines of the geographical partition, the
assets of the Air Force were divided between the new countries. India’s

Air Force retained the name of the Royal Indian Air Force, but three of

the ten operational squadrons and facilities, located within the borders of
Pakistan, were transferred to the Royal Pakistan Air Force. The RIAF