Sqn. ldr Samir Abrol, Son of Shri Sanjeev Abrol and Smt. Sushma Abrol, born on 17 July 1986 hailed from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. He had a dream to join the armed forces right from his childhood. After completing his schooling at Ryan International School Ghaziabad, he pursued his dream and joined the prestigious NDA. He got selected for the IAF in the flying branch and was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in the fighter stream on 21 June 2008. Sqn Ldr Samir Abrol was a trained fighter pilot of the IAF having more than 3500 hours of flying to his credit. He had the experience of flying several aircraft such as Sukhoi-30, Tejas, Hawks, and Jaguars, but the Mirage 2000 was special to him. Before being posted to the Bangalore-based elite Air Force unit, Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE), he had served in various front-line Air Force bases. He got selected as a test pilot and was posted to the IAF’s premier Aircraft and Systems Testing Establishment (ASTE). Sqn Ldr Samir Abrol was one such pilot serving with the ASTE and was engaged in carrying out various acceptance trial sorties for aircraft produced/upgraded by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited(HAL). He got married to Ms. Garima, a physiotherapist and a fitness instructor from Punjab in May 2015. During 2018-19, Sqn Ldr Samir Abrol was serving with ASTE as a test pilot and was conducting certification missions on a regular basis. On 01st of February 2019, he and Sqn Ldr Siddarth Negi were tasked for one such acceptance trial sortie on an upgraded Mirage 2000 trainer aircraft. Sqn Ldr Samir Abrol and Sqn Ldr Siddarth Negi were experienced pilots and knew their tasks well. However, during the takeoff roll, there was an uncontrollable technical snag. Sqn Ldr Samir Abrol was a dedicated soldier and a professional competent air warrior who laid down his life in the service of the nation.