Denzil Keelor VrC was a hero of the Indo-Pakistani war. He was honoured with a number of medals including the Veer Chakra

Vir Chakra

Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration...

, the Param Vishist Sewa Medal, the Keerti Chakra

Kirti Chakra

The Kirti Chakra is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, including posthumous awards. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Maha Vir Chakra...

 and the Ati Vishist Sewa Medal. He has a younger brother, Trevor

Trevor Keelor

Trevor Keelor, VrC, was a hero of the Indo-Pakistani war. He was honoured with a number of medals including the Vir Chakra and the Vayu Sena Medal. He had an elder brother, Denzil, who was also honoured for his service in the Indian Air Force. Both brothers have a Vir Chakra for the same feat of...

, who was also honoured for his service in the Indian Air Force

Indian Air Force

The Indian Air Force is the air arm of the Indian armed forces. Its primary responsibility is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during a conflict...

. Both brothers have a Veer Chakra for the same feat of shooting down a Sabre jet. This is the first time two brothers have received Veer Chakras for the same reason.

Biography

Denzil Keelor was born on the 7th December 1933 and went to school at St. George's College, Mussoorie

St. George's College, Mussoorie

St. George's College , is a premier boarding school in Mussoorie, in the state of Uttarakhand, India, affiliated to the ICSE council. The school, an all-boys residential and non-residential institution, spreading over of land, was founded in 1853 by the Capuchin Fathers and entrusted to the...

 ;St. Francis' College, Lucknow

St. Francis' College, Lucknow

St. Francis' College is a Senior Secondary boys-only private school in Lucknow, India, established and administered by The Catholic Diocease of Lucknow, a charitable religious society. The college was founded in 1885 as St. Francis' School and Orphanage, with the object of imparting education in a...

 and La Martiniere Lucknow

La Martiniere Lucknow

La Martinière College is an educational institution located in Lucknow, the capital of the Indian State of Uttar Pradesh. The college consists of two schools on different campuses for boys and girls. La Martinière Boys' College was founded in 1845 and La Martinière Girls' College was established...

. He joined the Indian Air Force on 6 November 1954 and rose to the rank of Air Marshal

Air Marshal

Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...

. He retired in 1991. During his retirement he worked as the President of the YMCA

YMCA

The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...

 for ten years. He is presently the chairman of Special Olympics Bharat.

Awards

Denzil Keelor's first award was the Veer Chakra

Vir Chakra

Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration...

 in 1965. The citation reads as follows:

On 19th September 1965, Sqn Ldr Denzil Keelor was providing fighter escort to Mystere aircraft during a strike mission in the operations against Pakistan. His section of four Gnat aircraft was engaged by four enemy Sabre jet aircraft and the battle was fought at a height of less than 2,000 feet from the ground where enemy anti-aircraft guns were also active. Under his guidance, his subsection leader shot down a Sabre jet aircraft. Thereafter Sqn Ldr Keelor himself engaged another Sabre jet and crippled it. Throughout the operations, Sqn Ldr Keelor was a source of inspiration to his pilots and ground personnel. His courage and devotion to duty were in the best traditions of the Air Force. For this he was awarded the Vir Chakra. The Sabre kill by Denzil earned the Keelor family a unique distinction. Both the brothers now had Sabres to their credit and both earned the Veer Chakra, making it the first time brothers had won the Veer Chakra for identical feats.

In 1978 Keelor was awarded the Kirti Chakra

Kirti Chakra

The Kirti Chakra is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, including posthumous awards. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Maha Vir Chakra...

. The citation reads as follows:

Gp. Capt. Keelor who had rich and wide combat experience and the destruction of a Sabre aircraft to his credit, was flying a MiG-21 U trainer on 27 Mar 78, when due to structural failure the canopy of the aircraft detached and flew off. Gp Capt Keelor felt sudden decompression and loss of control, but managed to fly back to base and execute a safe emergency landing without the canopy. Later on 17 May 78, during firing trials one of the 23 mm Cannon Shells exploded causing extensive damage and total electrical failure to his aircraft. He successfully executed another safe landing back at his airbase.

Denzil Keelor was awarded with the Ati Vishist Sewa Medal on 26 January 1986 and the Param Vishist Sewa Medal on 26th Jan 1989.