Fareastdriver
...“The Chinese and Indian governments are in dispute over their border in the Himalayas. This has given rise to fisticuffs and now they are beating bigger drums. The Indian Air Force has no all-weather fighter capability so the government, as a sign of support, are detaching 23 Squadron to India until the dispute is settled.”...
and Danny
Why, in the name of all that's good and holy, were we putting our noses into that hornet's nest ? India, Pakistan (who would have a dog in the fight) and China were all big boys then (and, I think, all nuclear armed). Let them settle their own differences ! Hadn't we all the trouble we wanted in Europe with the Cold War and all that ?
Bit late in putting this comment in, but as I have some old, small knowledge of those parts, I have been researching the history and material available on Google (until I lost the will to live). It is a good thing that the "fisticuffs" mentioned were mainly just high altitude artillery duels and not something far more serious. Interesting, though.
In 1962 I was with 99 Sqn (Britannias) and my logbook shows we flew two flights from Sharjah to Delhi on 24th and 25th November 1962. On both flights we were fully loaded with boxed .303 rifles and ammunution.
One amusing anecdote, on the first flight to Delhi the AQM (Loadmaster) was asked by the Indian reception party whether there was anything the crew wanted, probably thinking he'd ask for some tea or whatever. The AQM was more adventurous and suggested a copy of the "Kama Sutra" would go down well! So when we arrived the next day at Delhi on the second flight the Indian reception party proudly presented each member of the crew with a copy of the Kama Sutra!
ISTR that our arrival to deliver supplies was covered by the Indian press and we proudly posed to reporters and cameramen as the saviours of the Indian nation brandishing the Kama Sutra!
Fighting between India and China stopped about then so I assume our arms deliveries worked.
...and FWIW I still have my copy of the Kama Sutra as a souvenier of my RAF service way back in 1962.