New Delhi: "It is so beautiful when the full stop comes naturally...," said Captain Devi Sharan as he bid adieu to the cockpit as a commercial pilot after four decades. All said, the regret of not being able to save Rupin Katyal, a passenger of flight IC814 who was killed by hijackers, lingers on.
Sharan, who started flying in 1985, operated his last flight from Melbourne to Delhi on January 4. And the now 65-year-old pilot was also the captain of the ill-fated Indian Airlines flight IC814, that was hijacked on the eve of Christmas in December 1999.
"It is so beautiful when the full stop comes naturally... 40 years have passed by and there are beautiful memories," Sharan told PTI on Monday referring to his retirement as a commercial pilot.
During his 40 years of flying, Sharan has flown four types of aircraft -- Airbus 300, 330 as well as Boeing 737 and 787. For the last 14 years, he was flying the wide-body Boeing 787 plane. The retirement age for commercial pilots is 65 years.
The captain has one regret since the hijack episode. "I always think if I could have saved (Rupin) Katyal," he remarked. When asked about the hijack episode, the captain said it is very easy to discuss sitting in a room about hijacking.
"No hijacking is the same and one has to act as per the situation. There can be guidelines but there cannot be something specific. One has to be prepared for any professional hazard and there can be out of syllabus (questions)," he noted.
IC814 from Kathmandu to Delhi was hijacked on December 24, 1999, and when the aircraft cruising at 26,000 feet, Sharan had noticed a person onboard wearing a monkey cap and holding a hand grenade and a revolver in his hands.
From then, most of the nearly 180 passengers of the ill-fated plane had a harrowing time for eight days as the aircraft stopped at Amritsar, Lahore, Dubai and Kandahar. And one of the passengers Rupin Katyal was killed. Indian Airlines was merged with Air India in 2007.
In a message, Sharan thanked his friends and colleagues at Air India for a very memorable and glorious career. He also thanked passengers over the years for giving him the opportunity to fly them.
A video montage of his days with the airline along with the message was posted by Air India on social media with the title 'The Sky Bows, The Runway Salutes The Captain of IC814'.
When asked whether he has any message for the younger generation, Sharan said consistency, patience and hardwork are very important. After leaving the cockpit, what is his next plan? Pat came the response, "I am planning a long vacation".
