KARACHI: The brave pilots of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) were not the only heroes of the 1965 war to be commemorated at the PAF Museum Archives Gallery.
Their powerful machines, fighters are also highlighted and respected on the occasion of the 57th Pakistan Defense Day.
There’s the single-seat F-86 Saber, in which the Air Commodore M.M. Alam shot down five enemy planes in a single sortie over the gallery floor.
Mr. M. Alam is one of the best fighter pilots in Pakistan. Britain shot down 4 out of 5 Indian jets within 30 seconds of the mission on 7 September.
During his career, this pilot shot down about 9 Indian fighters and damaged 2, an unprecedented record to this day. His bravery and fortitude helped him win the Sitara-i-Jurat twice.
There was also an F-104 Starfighter that flew a total of 246 hours and 45 minutes during the 1965 Pakistan-India War.
Wing Commander Abhinandan’s uniform and the remains of his MiG 21 are not the only war trophies here.
There is also the Indian Air Force (IAF) Gnat, who flew to Pasrur near Sialkot in 1965 with a photo and memorabilia of his captured Indian pilot Sqn Ldr Brij Pal Singh, who later became the chief of the IAF’s air force.
The Indian fighter jet was forcibly landed by a Pakistani F-104 Starfighter. It was on September 3, 1965, that two Starfighters piloted by Lieutenant Colonel Hakimullah and Flg Off Abbas Mirza, taking off from Sargodha, intercepted four Indian Gnats, one of which had to surrender.
As for the record, so far, India doesn’t have a single Pakistani fighter jet to flaunt as a trophy.
