Legion of Honour for Capt Gopinath

NEW DELHI: France has bestowed the award of Chevalier de la legion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) on Capt GR Gopinath, Chairman, Air Deccan.

The award is in recognition of Capt Gopinath’s contribution to the development of Indo-French cooperation in the field of aviation.

The award will be conferred upon Capt Gopinath  by the French Ambassador, Dominique Girard on Saturday.

After retiring from the Army in 1978, Capt Gopinath launched India's first low-cost, no frills airlines in 2003, with aircrafts manufactured by the Toulouse based French company, ATR. Today, 700 ATRs form the backbone of Deccan Aviation, along with 10 helicopters and two charter jets operating from eight major locations criss-crossing the country. 

The French government confers several awards among which the Order of the Legion of Honour is the highest national distinction.

The Order of the Legion of Honour was instituted in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.