Sajjad Shaukat
ON 07 September, Air Force Day (Youm-i-Fizayya) is being celebrated in the memory of the martyrs and heroes of the 1965 war and to pay tribute to Pakistan Air Force (PAF) which won air war by defeating India. On 06 September 1965 when India attacked Pakistan, its forces crossed the international border and the BRB canal, and captured a town of Batapore, Lahore, (Lahore-Burki sector). The same day; a counter offensive of an armoured division and infantry division supported by PAF enforced the Indian 15th Division to withdraw to its starting point. Similarly, when Indian forces launched an offensive on Sialkot, aircraft of the PAF supported the Pakistan Army and Indian forces were compelled to move back. Besides, aircraft and valiant personnel of the PAF supported the ground forces in the sectors like Rajastan (Sindh), Khem Karan (Punjab) and Chumb (Kashmir) including other ones. Thus Pakistan’s forces recaptured Indian territories. While displaying valour and great courage, the pilots of the PAF castigated the Indian Air Force (IAF) in the air war. In this respect, Sqn Ldr M M Alam set new record on 07 September and shot down five Indian aircraft in less than sixty seconds at Sargodha. He is rightly branded as a “hunter of the hunters”.
And Flight Lieutenant Yunus Hussain fought in air battles fearlessly. During one such engagement, he fought singly against 6 enemy aircraft and shot down 2 Hunters. On 06 September, while attacking Halwara airfield, his small formation was intercepted by a large number of enemy. Although his aircraft was hit, but, he refused to break off the engagement by disregarding his personal safety and was martyred. Likewise, Sqn Ldr Sarfaraz Ahmad Rafiqui led a formation of 3 F-86 aircraft on a strike against Halwara airfield, the formation was intercepted by about 10 Hunter aircraft out of which he accounted for one. Then his guns jammed due to a defect. But Rafiqui refused to leave the battle area instead he ordered his No 2 to continue the engagement, while his end was never in doubt, but, he chose to disregard it and, his aircraft was shot down and he was martyred.
As regards the victory of PAF, a writer of the Pakistan Air Force elaborates, “To achieve this, PAF adopted an aggressive and courageous approach, which ultimately provided an impregnable shield to the country’s airspace. This was also attributable to the leadership of Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Asghar Khan and dynamic leadership of Air Marshal Nur Khan—said on September 04 that superiority in numbers does not decide air battles; better training, morale, and above all fighting spirit in fact are the deciding factors—what many don’t know is that it was the PAF who played a major role in denying General Chaudhry of Indian Army his cocktail party at Gymkhana Lahore. PAF air support at this crucial juncture turned the tables on the enemy—at this crucial juncture, appeared 06 PAF Sabres led by Sqn Ldr Sajjad “Nosey” Haider and wrought havoc with the enemy armor and infantry trying to cross the BRB Canal—air support continued as 18 more F-86 Sabres kept pounding guns, tanks which were trying to advance towards Lahore, Jassar and Kasur. PAF was instrumental in saving Lahore.” It is notable that since 05 August 2019 when Indian government revoked articles 35A and 370 of the Constitution, which gave a special status to the disputed territory of the Indian Illegally Occupied Kashmir (IIOK), Indian fanatic government of the ruling party BJP led by the extremist Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued lockdown there, as New Delhi unilaterally annexed the region with the Indian Federation to turn Muslim majority into minority. Implementing the ideology of Hindutva ((Hindu Nationalism), Indian rulers also issued domicile certificates to more than 400000 non-Kashmiris and also martyred many people by accelerated firing at the stones-pelting Kashmiris who have been protesting against Indian illegitimate actions.
Notably, PAF is supporting Pakistan’s Armed Forces and Rangers which have been boldly responding to India’s unprovoked shelling inside Pakistani side of Kashmir, while defending the airspace of the country. Tension escalated rapidly between the two countries on 27 February 2019 in the aftermath of the false flag terror attack of Pulwama, when in response to the Indian pre-emptive air strike near the town of Balakot-Pakistan’s sector of Kashmir, PAF shot down two Indian fighter jets and launched aerial strikes at six targets in the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK). Nevertheless, the 1965 war saw the best of the PAF’s war-fighting abilities, and made history by shooting down 13 aircraft in one day. During that war, PAF had destroyed 104 Indian aircraft on ground and in the air, while damaged more than 10—not counting the losses, inflicted by PAF’s night bombing on the India airfields and bases and other military installations.
By imbibing the same spirit of the 1965 war, PAF has supported Pakistan’s other Armed Forces, during the successful military operations which have killed many terrorists through ground offensive. In his book, titled “Duels of the Himalayan Eagle: The First Indo-Pak Air War”, ex-Indian Air Marshal Bharat Kumar admitted Indian defeat in the war of 1965. He reveals, “It was first air battle between India and Pakistan. The Indian Air Force was numerically superior, with 28 combat squadrons to PAF’s 11, but it was saddled with technologically inferior fighters. IAF suffered disproportionately higher losses than PAF.” Undoubtedly, in the air war between IAFF and PAF, the latter emerged as victorious in the I965 war. Pakistan Air Force gained a lot of credibility among Pakistan military and international war writers for successful defence of Lahore and other important areas of Pakistan and heavy retaliation to India.
—The writer is freelance columnist based in Lahore.
