Col Prithipal Singh Gill, The Only Indian To Serve In Air Force, Navy And Army Turns 100

Col. Prithipal Singh Gill, the only Indian who has served in the Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, and the Indian Army, added another milestone to his life on Friday.

Gill, a resident of Chandigarh turned 100 years old on Friday.

According to reports, Gill started his military life as a pilot in the British Royal Indian Air force in the year 1942 as a flight cadet in Karachi.?

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However, his stint with the Air Force did not last long as his father who was concerned about his safety forced him to leave his flying ambitions.

Next year, at the age of 23 Gill joined the Navy and served as a commissioned officer in the gunnery branch till 1948.

In a 2019 interview, Gill told The Tribune that “During World War II, I used to undertake escort duties for maritime convoys proceeding from the Indian mainland to the Persian Gulf.”

Two years after leaving the Navy, Gill joined the Indian Army in the Regiment of Artillery and retired as a Colonel in 1970.

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During his service, Gill served in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and the North-East, before hanging up his boots as a Sector Commander in Imphal.?

According to Gill, his father had also a military career and was close to Marshal Arjan Singh, the only five-star ranked officer in IAF history.