"Pippa Is Floating": The Tank That Created History In 1971
"Pippa Is Floating": The Tank That Created History In 1971
Crisis Alert
The apprehensions by the West-dominated central government in Pakistan to give legal rights to the Awami League, which was dominant in East Pakistan, to form a legitimate government in the National Assembly created political turmoil. The crisis reached a climax with one of the most significant wars in modern history which led to splitting Pakistan into two and the creation of Bangladesh.
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| Source: Twitter/Indianhistorypics, Credits: Raghu Rai/ Magnum |
The war which was fought on two fronts in the East and the West witnessed some of the most intensive tank battles.
The T-55 MBTs, PT-76 amphibious tanks, Centurions from the famous Battle of Basantar, AMX-13s, and indigenous Vijayanta, saw action in 1971, but the PT-76 amphibious tanks came face-to-face with Pakistan’s M-24 Chaffees’ before the war was officially declared.
The floating machine
The Palavushi Tanka (PT) -76 amphibious tanks were built by the Soviet Union and entered service in 1951. They weighed around 14.2 tonnes and were initially used for reconnaissance.
These tanks allowed a 3-member crew, against the usual 4-member tank crew. The amphibious design with a boat-like hull helped tanks “float”. The tank’s light armour protection and a thin hull made it vulnerable to 12.7 mm ammunition and wasn’t seen as the main battle tank.
With a 76 mm main gun, and a 7.62 machine gun, the tank had a range of 370 Km with a maximum on-road speed of 44 Km/Hr and amphibious speed on the water of 10 Km/Hr.
“Pippa Is Floating”
The 7th Light Cavalry was the first regiment in the Army to receive the PT-76 lightweight tanks. At a time when the tanks had heavy armour plating and weighed about 30 tonnes, these tanks weighed less than half.
The armoured regiments operate closely with infantry battalions and regular demonstrations, field exercises are conducted for better coordination and understanding. During one such demonstration, one Punjabi JCO from 45 Cavalry was amazed to see the tank float on water and compared it with Pippa (empty tin), unknown to the fact that the mic was on, he said “Pippa tair riyah hai” (Pippa is floating), everyone started laughing and later the Palavushi Tanka-76 was re-christened to Pippa on that day.
The Battle of Garibpur
A political turmoil in East Pakistan turned into a humanitarian crisis after a military crackdown was ordered under the name of ‘Operation Searchlight’ under Gen Tikka Khan’s command. This led to a massive influx of refugees in India, with an estimated 9.7 million refugees entering the country by mid-November.
The Pakistani army’s genocide created problems for India, continuous air space violations, and artillery shelling on Indian villages in the east made it clear that war is inevitable.
The Plan
It was time for India to strike to silence the enemy guns. India’s 14 Punjab (Nabha Akal) under Headquarters 42 Infantry Brigade under 9 Infantry Division was tasked to capture Garibpur, 9 Km east of Boyra salient, on the first light of November 21. The Nabha Akal battalion under the command of Lt Col RK Singh was supported by the ‘Charlie’ (C) Squadron of PT-76 Tanks under Maj DS Narang’s command along with 1 platoon of 102 Engineer Regiment with 87 battery of 6 Field Regiment, and remainder 6 Field Regiment and 78 Medium Regiment in support added more strength to the attacking force.
“Quickness is the essence of war” – Sun Tzu
Garibpur was 9 km inside East Pakistan and was a strategic position over the Chaugacha-Jessore axis. Capturing Garibpur was strategically important since it could’ve acted as a launchpad for operations in the Indian territory, and in case of a full military conflict, the 9 Infantry division would further capture the cantonment area in Jessore.
A battalion of Pakistan’s 107 Infantry brigade was located at Chaugacha and the remainder brigade and 9 Infantry Division at Jessore. Indian position and Garbpur would outflank the enemy position at Chaugacha and thus a tough enemy resistance was expected. The infantry battalions of Pakistan were supported by 3 Independent Armoured Squadron with US-made M-24 Chaffee tanks.
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| M-24 Chaffee |
The Indian troops crossed the Kadobak river which acted as the International Border between India and East Pakistan. The low weight-ground ratio of the PT-76 tanks and the ability to float was a force multiplier in this operation.
A night before D-Day, a night patrol under the command of Major AP Vishwanathan was sent across to the south to reconnoitre a suitable area ahead of Fatehpur which was 4 Km inside the enemy territory. Unfortunately, the enemy of surprise was lost as the Indian patrol clashed with the Pakistani patrol.
That very night Capt GS Gill, an MMG officer, along with Capt PP Chaturvedi from 6 Field Regiment were sent for a patrol to cover movement on the Jessore-Chagaucha axis.
On that foggy cold winter night, Capt GS Gill spotted the movement of enemy armour, thus helping in redirecting the tanks, RCL guns and Artillery for an attack. This patrol came as a turning point as the enemy’s location, movement was spotted.
Dawn is breaking, it’s early morning
Terrain and the surrounding conditions play a key role in turning the tide, like for example in 1965, during the battle of Haji Pir, heavy rain and dense fog turned things against the Indian troops, though victory came but conditions delayed it.
In the battle of Garibpur dense a foggy winter morning played against the forces but “he who knows the enemy and yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles”, the enemy was unaware of our deployment and things were murkier because of fog, while the night patrol helped us in locating the enemy movement south of Jessore-Chaugacha axis.
As the dawn broke out on November 21, a fierce battle began between India and Pakistan. During one of the tank battles, an enemy tank came very close to an infantry company which was unaware due to fog. The enemy’s Arty and tank fire forced the RCL guns to move back, but RCL gun detachment commander Havildar Lekh Raj single-handedly loaded the gun and fired on the roaring Chaffee, the tank was on fire and Havildar Lekh Raj won the Vir Chakra for his gallant action.
The Indian battalion-sized deployment was turning on Pakistan’s brigade-sized deployment which was supported by an independent armoured squadron and Arty (Artillery), and later by Pak’s F-86 Sabre fighter jets.
In another tank-tank battle, one of the Chaffees that became a threat was knocked out, it turned out to be a troop leader’s tank who tried to run, but was shot by Capt GS Gill. Major Narang was hit and killed while directing his troops, for his outstanding leadership and ultimate sacrifice, he was posthumously awarded the Maha Vir Chakra.
The deafening sound of guns stayed for over 7 hours in Garibpur. When guns went silent, 11 M-24 Chaffees’ were found destroyed and three abandoned in good condition, while the victory came at cost of 2 PT-76 tanks.
Battle shifts from ground to air: The Battle of Boyra
While the battalion was looking to strengthen its defenses, on November 22, Pakistan’s F-86 Sabre jets roared in over the battalion. Victory comes to those who act smart during the fog of war. Major Kailash Nath, the battery commander fired a smoke gun in the direction of the enemy in Singhajhuli, this diverted the jets and they fired on their troops.
The No. 22 Squadron of the Indian Air Force entered the air battle with their small, but manoeuvrable Gnats. The Gnats and Sabres were up against each other again after 1965. The dogfight ended with 3 Sabres being shot by the Gnats.
Flight Lt Roy Andrew Massey led the Gnats, won the Vir Chakra, along with Flight Lt Ganapathy and Flying Officer Donald Lazarus.
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| Twitter: @IAF_MCC |
The combined effort of a battalion-sized formation brought Pakistan’s brigade-sized troops, supported by Arty and M-24 Chaffees' to their knees and the air battle was the last nail in the coffin.
Sources:
Book: The Burning Chaffees by Brigadier B S Mehta
Bharat Rakshak: The Battle of Garibpur
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