Welinkar was one of the 1.3 Million Indians who answered the call to fight for the British Empire in WW1. Nearly 74,000 never saw their homeland again. Welinkar was educated at Cambridge University, then trained to become an aviator and wished to join the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) which later became the RAF. He encountered prejudices and was encouraged to become an air mechanic. He was eventually given a commission as an officer in the RAF. He was posted in France and patrolled the Western Front. He was shot down in action in April 2018 but his body wasn’t found. Many years later and after much searching, a grave stone with the name ‘Oberleutnant S.C.Wunkar’ was discovered and confirmed to be that of Welinkar’s. The headstone inscription now says ‘To the honoured Memory of one of the Empires Bravest Sons’