The IAF has recommended Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman for a Vir Chakra, the third-highest wartime medal after Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra, while also transferring him out of Srinagar to another base on the western front till he is found medically fit to fly again. Varthaman, who shot down an F-16 before his MiG-21 was also downed during the aerial skirmish with the PAF, was released on March 1 after being captured by the Pak army on February 27. 
 

The IAF has recommended Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman for a Vir Chakra, the third-highest wartime medal after Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra, while also transferring him out of Srinagar to another base on the western front till he is found medically fit to fly again. Varthaman, who shot down an F-16 before his MiG-21 was also downed during the aerial skirmish with the PAF, was released on March 1 after being captured by the Pak army on February 27.