Eagles Over Bangladesh

In December 1971 Bangladesh was born. Its birthing was among the most painful of any new nation: it had suffered a brutal genocide conducted by its former countrymen from West Pakistan, and a war for liberation fought between the indigenous Mukti Bahini (Liberation Army) and the Indian Armed Forces on one side, and the West Pakistani Armed Forces on the other. Open war broke out on the Western and Eastern fronts in December 1971. The war ended quickly, with the West Pakistani Army surrendering in Dacca two weeks later. A significant factor in facilitating the Indian Army’s rapid progress to Dacca was the Indian Air Force (IAF) which proved itself to be a formidable fighting force. Eagles over Bangladesh: The Indian Air Force in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War recounts the IAF offensive over Bangladesh, commencing with the raids on Dacca on the first day of the war, and moving on to the final coup de grace delivered on the Governor’s House in Dacca. It aims to fill in the gaps regarding a military conflict that took place almost four decades ago.’