Media reports further stated that the IAF pilot would now go on sick leave on the advice of Army's Research and Referral Hospital doctors in New Delhi. A medical review board in the near future will assess the medical fitness of the Wing Commander and decide when he can resume his operations as a fighter pilot.
On March 1, Pakistan had returned an Indian pilot who had become the face of the worst military crisis between the two countries in decades, in a gesture aimed at demonstrating its willingness to de-escalate the conflict.