Brigadier Lakhwinder Singh Lidder Killed in IAF Chopper Crash was Set for Promotion

Brig Lidder also served as the Director Military Operations at the Army headquarters in Delhi. He had commanded his Batallion in Congo when Gen Rawat was the Brigade Commander there in 2009 as part of the UN peacekeeping mission.

New Delhi: One of the armed forces personnel killed in the tragic chopper crash near Coonoor was Brigadier Lakhwinder Singh Lidder, a decorated soldier who worked extensively on tri-services reforms as the defence assistant to CDS Gen. Bipin Rawat. A second-generation Army officer, Brig Lidder was set to become a Major General soon and was preparing to take over a division after serving as a key member in Gen Rawat’s team for more than a year.

Brig Lidder served extensively in counter-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir and commanded a brigade along India’s borders with China. As the defence assistant to Gen Rawat, Brig Lidder played a key role in planning India’s higher defence reforms under which an ambitious roadmap has been drawn up to roll out tri-services theatre commands to ensure greater synergy among the Army the Navy and the Air Force.

Brig Lidder also served as the Director Military Operations at the Army headquarters in Delhi. He had commanded his Batallion in Congo when Gen Rawat was the Brigade Commander there in 2009 as part of the UN peacekeeping mission.

Chief of Defence Staff Gen Rawat, his wife Madhulika, Brig Lidder and 10 armed forces personnel were killed in the Mi-17V5 helicopter crash near Coonoor on Wednesday, in one of the biggest air accidents in India in decades involving senior military officers.

Brig Lidder, a recipient of the Sena Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal, had his roots in Haryana’s Panchkula and served as India’s defence attache to Kazakhstan in his distinguished career.

He was commissioned into 2 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles in December 1990, a battalion that he later commanded. In a Twitter post, former Union minister Rajyavardhan Rathore, who had served in the Army, described Brig Lidder as one of the “bravest officers”.

“We trained together at #NDA. We fought terrorists together in #Kashmir. In the loss of Brig LS Lidder, SM, VSM today, India has lost one of its brightest & bravest officers & I have lost a friend. A decorated soldier, caring husband & doting father, you will be missed, Tony,” Rathore said.

He also attended the Higher Command and National Defence College course. Brig Lidder was the topper of junior command and senior command courses at Army War College in his batch. He even topped the infantry mortar course as well. He is survived by his wife and a daughter.

In a statement in Parliament, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said a tri-services enquiry into the incident has been ordered by the Indian Air Force and it will be headed by Air Marshal Manvendra Singh, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Training Command.