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83-662: Project Sabre II was the Pakistan Air Force 's program to develop a feasible and low-cost multirole combat jet based on an existing design—the Chengdu F-7 Skybolt , a Chinese variant of the MiG–21 . The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) initiated Project Sabre II in 1987, hiring the American aerospace firm Grumman , to provide crucial expertise to refine the baseline aircraft design along with specialists from

166-610: A Sukhoi Su-30 MKI , a claim rejected by Indian authorities. Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman , who was piloting the MiG-21 Bison, was captured and arrested by the Pakistani military upon being shot down. He was held for two days before being released at the Wagah - Attari border crossing on 1 March. Initially, Pakistani military officials claimed to have had two pilots in custody, one of whom died while undergoing treatment,

249-513: A photo reconnaissance mission. Two PAF F-86F Sabres ( Flt. Lt. M. N. Butt (leader) and Flt. Lt. M. Yunis) of No. 15 Squadron on Air Defence Alert (ADA) were scrambled from PAF Base Peshawar to intercept the IAF aircraft. Butt attempted to bring down the Canberra by firing his Sabre's machine guns, but the Canberra was flying at an altitude of more than 50,000 feet—beyond the operational ceiling of

332-585: A "qualitative advantage". This statement has been refuted by some officials in Pakistan, who say that the IAF's MiG-21 , Hawker Hunter and Folland Gnat aircraft had better performance than the PAF's F-86 fighters, without accounting for the obvious quantitative advantage that the IAF possessed. According to retired PAF Air Commodore Sajad Haider , the F-86 Sabre was inferior in terms of both power and speed to

415-685: A base and that they had support from within the Taliban. These airstrikes mark the second instance of attack by Pakistan on the sovereign soil of Afghanistan in a period less than two years. The first similar Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan soil came in 2022. The PAF has 27 airbases of which 19 are flying bases and 8 are non-flying bases. Flying bases are operational bases from which aircraft operate during both peacetime and wartime; whereas non-flying bases conduct either training, administration, maintenance, air defence operations, or mission support. The Pakistan Air Force's Special Services Wing (SSW)

498-479: A claim that has widely been accepted by most international sources as "a stretch". The IAF ran a larger offensive air campaign by devoting 40% of its air effort to offensive air support alone. The two countries have made contradictory claims of combat losses during the war and few neutral sources have verified the claims of either country, as is the case with most India-Pakistan conflicts. The PAF claims that it shot down 104 IAF aircraft and lost 19 of its own, while

581-573: A claim which was later changed to having only Abhinandan in custody. This was taken to be evidence of a Pakistani pilot being shot down by some Indian sources. US count of PAF's F-16 fleet and various international military observers, refused to buy Indian claim of shooting down PAF's F-16. At least 47 people were killed and 22 injured in two airstrikes by Pakistani forces along the border with Afghanistan on 16 April 2022. The Taliban summoned Pakistan's ambassador in Kabul and registered their protest against

664-598: A common complaint of pilots converting from propeller planes to jets was that early turbojets were not responsive to changes in thrust input. GE executives Frederick A. Larson and Paul Setts also set the goal that the new engine would be smaller than the F-4's GE J79 , but provide at least as much thrust, and cost half as much as the P&;W F100 engine for the F-16. Due to a fan designed to smooth airflow before it enters

747-488: A high-value target (HVT) commander. Another commander, Abdullah Mehsud, was claimed to have been killed, but later released a video refuting the claim. It was also reported that Mehsud's house was targeted in which his wife and a minor son was killed. Pakistan went on to blame the Pakistani Taliban and its splinter militias for the deaths of hundreds of Pakistani civilians, and claimed that they used Afghanistan as

830-509: A maximum of 17,700 lbf (78.7 kN) of thrust with afterburner. The new engine version was used on Kuwaiti Hornets, later U.S. C and D Hornets, and subsequent Hornets. The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle uses a single General Electric F404-GE-102 turbofan engine with Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system; the engine is similar to the F404-402, but with additional redundancies built in for single-engine operations. The aircraft has

913-658: A maximum speed of Mach 1.5. Almost 4,000 F404 engines power the F/A-18 Hornets in service worldwide. The F404 engine family had totaled over 12 million flight hours by 2010. For HAL Tejas , GE developed an uprated F404-IN20 , which is the highest thrust variant in F404 family, and which produces a maximum of 19,000 lbf (85 kN) of thrust with afterburner. It incorporates latest hot section materials and technologies as well as FADEC system for reliable power and performance. India bought 10 F404-F2J3 which

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996-667: A much less expensive solution for replacement of the F-6 , the F-7P Skybolt , an upgraded version of the F-7M Airguard. The F-7P fleet was to be supported by a fleet of over 100 advanced F-16s from the United States, 40 of which had been delivered during the 1980s. The PAF launched a secretive project, ROSE , to procure as many second-hand Dassault Mirages as possible and upgrade their electronic systems. In March 1990 it

1079-557: A new high-tech combat aircraft, between late 1990 and 1993 the PAF evaluated the European Panavia Tornado MRCA (multi-role combat aircraft), and ultimately rejected it. France's Dassault Mirage 2000E and an offer from Poland for the supply of MiG-29s and Su-27s were also considered, but no deal materialized. In 1992, the PAF once again looked towards the French Mirage 2000, reviving a proposal from

1162-739: A notable Christian pilot known for being the first to fly the jointly-built Chinese and Pakistani JF-17 Thunder fighter jet since 2010 and was one of two PAF pilots flying the JF-17 at the 2011 Izmir Air Show in Turkey . GE F404 GE developed the F404 for the F/A-18 Hornet , shortly after losing the competition for the F-15 Eagle 's engine to Pratt & Whitney , and losing the Lightweight Fighter (LWF) competition to

1245-620: A retaliatory attack on India's nuclear research facilities in Trombay in the event of an Indian attack on Kahuta. It was decided the most suitable aircraft would be the F-16 Fighting Falcon , which the United States eventually agreed to supply after the PAF refused to purchase the F-5 . In 1983, when the first batch of F-16s reached Pakistan, ACM Shamim informed Zia of the PAF's increasing capability to effectively respond to an attack on

1328-737: A rifle factory in Gurwek with the material support provided by the government of Afghanistan . In 1953–1954, the PAF's No. 14 Squadron led an operation from Miranshah airbase and heavily bombarded the Faqir of Ipi 's compound in Gurwek which ultimately forced Faqir to detach from an armed campaign against Pakistan. On 10 April 1959, on the occasion of the Eid ul-Fitr festival holiday in Pakistan , an Indian Air Force (IAF) English Electric Canberra B(I)58 of No. 106 Squadron entered Pakistani airspace on

1411-400: A similar Iranian missile strike inside Pakistani territory . According to Iran, nine foreign nationals were killed in the attack. Baloch Liberation Army , one of the group targeted in the strikes, said that the strikes had targeted and killed its people. It was first strike on Iranian soil by any foreign power since the time of end of Iran–Iraq War in 1988. On 18 March 2024, in response to

1494-455: A standoff between India and Pakistan had begun, Pakistan claimed to have struck six targets near Indian military installations inside Indian Controlled Kashmir, which hit open spaces through a codenamed "Operation Swift Retort". Indian Air Force jets were scrambled to intercept the PAF jets inside Jammu and Kashmir. Following the interception, a fierce dogfight ensued and Pakistani aircraft shot down an Indian MiG-21 . Ten minutes before

1577-651: Is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces , tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan , with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when required, and a tertiary role of providing strategic airlift capability to Pakistan. As of 2024 , as per the International Institute for Strategic Studies , the PAF has more than 35,000 active-duty personnel. PAF stands as

1660-807: Is the branch's elite special operations fighting force. Originally coming into existence following the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 , the SSW is heavily modelled off of the United States Air Force 's Special Tactics Squadrons with some elements inspired by the United States Army Rangers . The unit remained active but saw little prioritization by the Pakistani military until after the Kargil War . In late 1999,

1743-552: Is used on 2 Technology Demonstrators and 6 prototypes of Tejas in early 2000s. Two deals for 17 and 24 engines for powering LSP (including Naval prototypes) and Mk 1 IOC variants of Tejas was signed in 2004 and 2007, respectively. As of September 2024, 75 engines (including F2J3 and IN20 variants) have been delivered to India. On 17 August 2021, India signed a contract with GE worth ₹ 5,375 crore (equivalent to ₹ 60 billion or US$ 720 million in 2023) to supply 99 F404 engines and service support by 2029. However,

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1826-679: The 2008 Mumbai attacks , the Pakistan Air Force was put on high alert in anticipation of any potential Indian accusations and offensives. It deployed to all its wartime locations and started routine combat air patrols. The speed and intensity of the deployment and PAF's readiness took the Indian Army High Command by surprise and later reports suggest that was the main factor to influence the Indians' decision of not going for cross border raids inside Pakistan. The PAF

1909-614: The Abbottabad area until early morning and later returned to their air bases. However, the fact that so many non-stealth aircraft had entered Pakistani airspace, stayed for three hours to carry out a major operation, and that PAF jets only arrived at the location 24 minutes after the American helicopters had left made a senior PAF official term it "one of the most embarrassing incidents in Pakistan's history". The Pakistan Army faced several problems during its 2009 offensive against

1992-543: The Bangladesh Liberation War between West Pakistan and East Pakistan (later joined by India). On 22 November 1971, 10 days before the start of a full-scale war, four PAF F-86 Sabre jets attacked Indian and Mukti Bahini positions at Garibpur , near the international border. Two of the four PAF Sabres were shot down and one damaged by the IAF's Gnats. On 3 December, India formally declared war against Pakistan following massive preemptive strikes by

2075-566: The F-7M . Changes included upgrades to its avionics suite, radar system and engine, and a redesigned forward fuselage. The PAF stated that the Sabre II would replace around 150 F-6s in combat service. A picture showed that the F-7's nose inlet had been replaced with a solid nose radome and a new pair of air inlets were mounted on the sides of the fuselage under the cockpit. Under Project Sabre II and

2158-884: The F110 for the Air Force as an alternative to the Pratt & Whitney F100 for use on the F-16 and F-15 based on the F101 and used F404 technology. The F110 was derived from the F101 via the F101DFE, though some elements of the F404 such as the design of the fan, albeit enlarged, were incorporated, per the F110 page and other sources. GE developed the F404-GE-402 in response to a Swiss requirement for more power in its F/A-18 version; it produces

2241-748: The Guizhou JL-9 (or FTC-2000) jet trainer / fighter aircraft. Pratt & Whitney's PW1216 , an afterburning derivative of the J52-P-409 turbojet producing 16,000 pounds-force (71 kN) of thrust, was also proposed as the Sabre II's engine. Its afterburner was designed in China. Fitting the APG-66 radar was also planned. As the Soviet Union was withdrawing from neighboring Afghanistan , American interest in Pakistan lessened. The PAF terminated

2324-603: The Pratt & Whitney F100 powered YF-16 . For the F/A-18, GE based the F404 on the YJ101 engine they had developed for the Northrop YF-17 , enlarging the bypass ratio from 0.20 to 0.34 to enable higher fuel efficiency. The engine consists of a three-staged fan, seven axial stage compressor arrangement, single stage low and high pressure turbines, an augmentor, and produces maximum thrust of 16,000 lbf (71.2 kN) in

2407-478: The Pressler amendment was passed, the United States placed sanctions and an arms embargo on Pakistan starting on 6 October 1990 due to the continuance of the country's nuclear weapons research programme. All eleven Peace Gate III F-16s, along with seven F-16A and ten F-16B of the 60 Peace Gate IV F-16s, which had been built by the end of 1994 were embargoed and put into storage on U.S. soil. Desperate for

2490-735: The Pulwama attack in Jammu and Kashmir , India accused involvement of Pakistani hands in this incident. In response, India carried out airstrikes in the vicinity of the town of Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, several miles inside the province's boundary with Pakistan-administered Kashmir . Pakistan's military claimed that the Indian planes dropped their payload in an uninhabited wooded hilltop area near Balakot after being intercepted by PAF fighter jets. On 27 February 2019, when

2573-658: The Soviet Air Force in support of the Afghan Air Force during the course of the conflict; one of which belonged to Alexander Rutskoy . A letter of agreement for up to 28 F-16A and 12 F-16B was signed in December 1981. The contracts, Peace Gate I and Peace Gate II were for 6 and 34 Block 15 models respectively, which would be powered by the F100-PW-200 engine. The first Peace Gate I aircraft

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2656-613: The Soviet–Afghan War . Once the Soviet forces retreated, Pakistani cooperation was no longer required and military and economic sanctions were imposed on Pakistan under the Pressler amendment in 1990. This prevented F-16 aircraft already paid for by the PAF during the Afghan war from being delivered. Efforts by the PAF to find a replacement failed (see Pakistan Air Force 1990–2001, the lost decade ). The Pakistan Air Force decided on

2739-688: The United States further hampered the Sabre II development effort in the 1990s. In 1995, Pakistan and China began a collaboration which led to the successful JF-17 Thunder program. In 1982, the Indian Air Force (IAF) procured the MiG-29 Fulcrum from the Soviet Union to modernize its fighter aircraft fleet. As a result, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) began looking for new technology to replace its aging fighters. By 1984,

2822-536: The Vayu Sena gallantry medal. India stated that it had only lost a single aircraft (a MiG-21) while claiming to have shot down a Pakistani F-16. Pakistan rejected India's statement, stating that no F-16s were deployed. India also accepted loss of its Mi-17 helicopter in a friendly fire terming it as "a big mistake". Pakistan would later go on to accept that F-16s had been used, but maintained that none of them were shot down. Pakistan also claimed to have shot down

2905-487: The international border . Although the Royal Afghan Air Force had seven MiG-17 squadrons and another MiG-21 squadron being operationalized, no known dogfight has been recorded between the two sides. The PAF fleet at the time consisted of 12 F-104 Starfighters , some 120 F-86 Sabres and around 20 B-57 Canberra bombers . The PAF claims to have had complete air superiority over the battle area from

2988-410: The 27 February airstrikes, an IAF Mi-17 helicopter was shot down by an Indian Spyder missile , having been mistaken for a PAF drone. This resulted in total loss of the aircraft and death of all on board: two pilots (squadron leaders Siddarth Vashista and Ninad Mandavgane), flight engineer Vishal Kumar Pandey, sergeant Vikrant Sehrawat, and corporals Deepak Pandey and Pankaj Kumars, and one civilian on

3071-566: The Chinese Super-7 project, the F-7 airframe was redesigned with angled air intakes on the sides of the fuselage so a solid radome nose could house radar and other avionics from Northrop's F-20 "Tigershark" fighter . The Chinese WP-7 turbojet engine was to be replaced with a modern turbofan engine, either the GE F404 or PW1120 , to improve performance. The resulting aircraft, designated F-7M Sabre-II, would have looked much like

3154-614: The F-7M, the Air HQ of the Pakistan Air Force initiated Project Sabre–II to the develop a low-cost multirole fighter jet on the model of the F-7M. In January 1987, the Pakistan Air Force commissioned New York -based Grumman Aerospace to conduct studies and assess the feasibility of the Sabre II design concept with Pakistani aerial specialists and the Chinese Chengdu Aircraft corporation . After five to seven months,

3237-686: The F-86F. When Yunis took over from his leader, the Canberra suddenly lost height while executing a turn over Rawalpindi . Yunis fired a burst that struck the Canberra at an altitude of 47,500 feet and brought it down over Rawat , marking the first direct aerial victory of the PAF. Both crew members of the IAF Canberra ejected and were captured by Pakistani authorities. They were subsequently released after remaining in detention for some time. Between 1960 and 1961, Royal Afghan Army troops along with thousands of Pashtun tribesmen from Afghanistan crossed

3320-687: The Faqir's rebellion, Pakistan Air Force in June 1949 inadvertently bombed the Afghan village of Mughalgai on the Waziristan border with Afghanistan while chasing the Pashtunistan separatists who attacked Pakistani border posts from Afghanistan, this attack came to known as Mughalgai raid which left 23 separatists dead and further fuelled Afghan support for Pashtunistan. Faqir established Gurwek as headquarters for his activities. Faqir also established

3403-443: The IAF claimed it shot down 73 PAF aircraft while losing 60 of its own. According to most independent and neutral sources, the PAF lost some 20 aircraft while the IAF lost somewhere between 60 and 75. Despite the intense fighting throughout the course of the war, the conflict was effectively a stalemate and inconclusive in its result. By late 1971, the intensification of the independence movement in erstwhile East Pakistan led to

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3486-427: The IAF's Hawker Hunter . Air Commodore Sajad Haider , who flew with No. 19 squadron also stated that the F-104 Starfighter did not deserve its reputation as "the pride of the PAF" because it "was unsuited to the tactical environment of the region. It was a high-level interceptor designed to neutralise Soviet strategic bombers in altitudes above 40,000 feet." Nevertheless, the IAF is believed to have feared facing

3569-439: The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 and later helped establish the Combat Commanders School (CCS). Wing Commander Melvin Leslie Middlecoat was the Commanding Officer of No. 9 Squadron during the 1965 war, he and Squadron Leader Peter Christy fought and were KIA in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 . Patrick Desmond Callaghan was another Christian officer who rose to the rank of Air Vice Marshal. Wing Commander Ronald Felix has been

3652-424: The PAF against IAF installations in Srinagar , Ambala , Sirsa , Halwara and Jodhpur . However, the IAF did not suffer any significant losses because the leadership had anticipated such a move and consequently, precautions were taken. The IAF was quick to respond to Pakistani airstrikes, following which the PAF carried out mostly defensive sorties. Hostilities officially ended at 14:30 GMT on 17 December, after

3735-418: The PAF and the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) . After studying the Sabre II concept with Grumman, the PAF terminated the program as unfeasible on economic grounds. Grumman withdrew from the project after sanctions were imposed by the United States on China after Beijing's suppression of the Tiananmen Square student protests in 1989. An embargo on military aid to Pakistan imposed by

3818-402: The PAF's F-7P (Chengdu F-7) fighters were equipped with western electronic systems. The PAF began developing an improved version of the F-7M to replace its large fleet of F-6 fighters. The Pakistan Air Force started looking for a new fighter to replace their large fleet of Shenyang F-6 fighters, as they approached the end of their service lives in the late 1980s. After showing interest in

3901-441: The PAF's current state, "Indian aircraft could reach the area in three minutes whereas the PAF would take eight minutes, allowing the Indians to attack the facility and return before the PAF could defend or retaliate". Because Kahuta was close to the Indian border, a consensus was reached acknowledging that the best way to deter a possible Indian attack would be to procure new advanced fighters and weaponry. These could be used to mount

3984-446: The PAF's joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. A C-130 transport aircraft was indigenously modified for day/night ISR operations. Use of laser-guided bombs was increased to 80% of munitions used, as compared to 40% in the previous 1960s Bajaur campaign . A small corps of ground spotters were trained and used by the PAF, in addition to Pakistan Army spotters, to identify high-value targets. Prior to

4067-474: The Pakistan Air Force decided to resume the program and quickly reached out to China. Memoranda of Understanding were reached between both countries towards developing new aircraft to fill the role of the Super 7. This led to the successful development of the JF-17 Thunder , introduced in 2003. Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force ( PAF ) ( Urdu : پاک فِضائیہ , romanized :  Pāk Fìzāʾiyah ; pronounced [pɑːk fɪzɑːɪjəɦ] )

4150-406: The Pakistan Army's offensive into South Waziristan , the PAF attacked militant infrastructure with 500 lb and 2000 lb bombs. A number of civilian casualties occurred during PAF airstrikes on 10 April 2010 in the FATA tribal region . According to sources from the Pakistani military, the first bombing was targeted at a gathering of militants in a compound. Locals who had quickly moved onto

4233-430: The SSW was largely revived and restructured for active service and is currently fielding around 1,200 troops. Since its inception, religious minorities have been free to pursue careers within the Pakistan Armed Forces, with the exception of Hindus until 2001. Following its involvement in the global U.S. -led War on Terror , Pakistan released the Hindu minority in the country from the discriminatory law and granted them

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4316-406: The Sabre II project after Grumman 's warning that it was financially risky and less feasible than other options. Worsening of the US–Chinese relations after Beijing's suppression of the Tiananmen Square student protests also hurt the project, as U.S. sanctions prevented transfer of American technology to China. Grumman Aerospace withdrew from the project shortly thereafter. At the same time,

4399-439: The Starfighter in combat despite its lack of effectiveness in comparison to the IAF's fleet of Folland Gnats . According to Indian sources, the F-86F performed reasonably well against the IAF's Hunters but not as well against the Gnat, which was nicknamed the Sabre Slayer by the IAF. Per India , most of the aircraft losses of the IAF were allegedly on the ground while the PAF suffered most of their losses in aerial combat,

4482-410: The Taliban in North-West Pakistan . Hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis vacated the area when the offensive was announced and, eventually, over two million had to be accommodated in refugee camps . The offensive was to be completed as quickly as possible to allow the refugees to return to their homes but the army's fleet attack helicopters were insufficient to provide adequate support to infantry on

4565-406: The US Congress imposed an embargo on economic and military exports to Pakistan when Congressional leaders became aware of Pakistan's atomic bomb program . A panic ensued among the Pakistani military , as its nuclear bomb program impacted the Super-7 project. The US government tolerated Pakistan's nuclear program during the 1980s due to a desire for the country's cooperation in defeating the USSR in

4648-420: The area tasked with finding the exact number of civilian casualties reported that 61 civilians were killed and 21 were wounded. This was not confirmed by government figures but Pakistan's then-Chief of the Army Staff, General Ashfaq Kayani , gave a public apology on 17 April. It is reported that BBC News and several other media correspondences were not allowed to take interviews from the injured. Following

4731-470: The attack from Afghanistan, Pakistan Air Force carried out two intelligence based airstrikes on Afghanistan's eastern border provinces of Khost and Paktika . The Afghan government claim that Pakistan killed five women and three children. Pakistan denies this, claiming that it killed terrorists instead while targeting the Hafiz Gul Bahadur militant group, a splinter organization of the Pakistani Taliban , and that it had successfully killed Sehra alias Janan,

4814-497: The compressor, the F404 has high resistance to compressor stalls , even at high angles of attack. It requires less than two shop visits per 1,000 flight hours and averages 6,500 hours between in-flight events. It also demonstrates high responsiveness to control inputs, spooling from idle to full afterburner in 4 seconds. The engine contains an in-flight engine condition monitoring system (IECMS) that monitors for critical malfunctions and keeps track of parts lifetimes. GE developed

4897-418: The early 1980s to procure around 20–40 aircraft, but a sale did not occur because France did not want to sell a fully capable version due to pressure from the United States. In August 1994, the PAF was offered the Saab JAS-39 Gripen by Sweden , but the sale did not occur because 20% of the Gripen's components were sourced from the U.S., which was still maintaining sanctions on Pakistan. In mid-1992, Pakistan

4980-405: The eight largest Air Force in the world. PAF is the largest Air Force of the Muslim world in terms of aircraft fleet. Its primary mandate and mission is "to provide, in synergy with other inter-services, the most efficient, assured and cost effective aerial defence of Pakistan." Since its establishment in 1947 , the PAF has been involved in various combat operations , providing aerial support to

5063-462: The extremely porous Pakistan–Afghanistan border and entered the semi-autonomous Bajaur Agency of Pakistan in an effort to annex the region. The Pakistan Air Force sent F-86 Sabre jets in order to support the Pakistani Forces and local Pashtun tribesmen of Pakistan who were fighting the Afghan infiltrators. The F-86 Sabre jets also executed bombing runs on Royal Afghan Army positions in Kunar , Afghanistan, thus leading Afghan forces to fall back to

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5146-467: The fall of Dacca on 15 December. The PAF flew about 2,840 sorties and destroyed 71 IAF aircraft while losing 43 of its own. In 1979, the PAF's Chief of the Air Staff , Air Chief Marshal Anwar Shamim , was told by then- President and Chief of the Army Staff General Zia-ul-Haq , that Pakistan had reliable intelligence on Indian plans to attack and destroy Pakistan's nuclear research facilities in Kahuta . ACM Shamim told General Zia-ul-Haq that, in

5229-428: The first engine of the deal signed in 2021 is yet to be delivered as of October 2024 which has led to the delay of delivery of HAL Tejas Mk1A aircraft to the Indian Air Force . Earlier reports suggested that engine delivery was expected to be commenced from September 2024 at the rate of 1-2 per month. GE developed the F404 into the F412-GE-400 non-afterburning turbofan for the McDonnell Douglas A-12 Avenger II . After

5312-416: The ground (Kifayat Hussain Gani). In April 2023 IAF court martialled Group Captain Sumon Roy Chaudhry, second in command of Srinagar Air Force Station at the time of the PAF strikes for negligence, and he was to be dismissed, however the dismissal was ruled ultra vires by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana , who set a date of 12 September 2023 for their hearing The pilots were posthumously awarded

5395-541: The ground as they were scattered throughout the British India to be given and collected later on. Of these very few were in flyable condition so that they could be used. Subsequently, it also got eight C-47 Dakota cargo planes which it used to transport supplies to soldiers fighting in the 1947 War in Kashmir against India. First two H.P.57 Halifax bombers were delivered in 1948 and were used during 1947 War for night-time supply drop missions at Skardu and other northern areas of Pakistan. All received against allotted at

5478-400: The ground. The PAF was sent into action against the Taliban to make up for the lack of helicopter gunships. Because the PAF was trained and equipped to fight a conventional war , a new "counter-terrorist doctrine" had to be improvised. The PAF's Saffron Bandit exercise focused on extensive training of combat personnel to undertake COIN operations. New equipment was inducted to improve

5561-440: The group concluded that the financial risks caused by very high project costs, and the availability of more cost-effective options outweighed the potential benefits from technology transfer from the US to the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex , increasing its experience and technical knowledge. Grumman, the Pakistan Air Force and the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) created the Sabre II concept by radically upgrading

5644-431: The military airstrikes inside Afghanistan. These airstrikes mark the first known instance of a foreign country launching attack on Afghan soil since the establishment of Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan. At least 9 people were killed when Pakistan Air Force conducted retaliatory strikes, codenamed as Operation Marg Bar Sarmachar on seven targets within Iranian Sistan-Balochistan province . The attack came two days after

5727-449: The nuclear research facilities at Kahuta. Due to rising tensions with the Soviet Union due to its invasion of Afghanistan , Pakistan's ISI systematically coordinated with the CIA , MI6 and Mossad to secure American resources and armaments for the Afghan mujahideen who were combating the invading Soviet forces . Various reports during this period widely indicated that the PAF had in fact covertly engaged in aerial combat against

5810-445: The operations and relief efforts of the Pakistani military. Under Article 243, the Constitution of Pakistan appoints the President of Pakistan as the civilian Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) , by statute a four-star air officer , is appointed by the President with the consultation and confirmation needed from the Prime Minister of Pakistan . The Royal Pakistan Air Force (RPAF)

5893-490: The original F404-GE-400 model. The engine was designed with a higher priority on reliability than performance. Cost was the main goal in the design of the engine. GE also analyzed "throttle profiles" and found that pilots were changing throttle settings far more often than engineers previously expected, putting undue stress on the engines. GE also sought with the F404 a design that would avoid compressor stalls and other engine failures, and would respond quickly to control inputs;

5976-575: The remaining five intruders (two Su-22s, two MiG-23s , and one Su-25 ). Most of these kills were by the AIM-9 Sidewinder , but at least one (a Su-22) was destroyed by cannon fire. Pakistani Flight Lieutenant Khalid Mahmoud is credited with three of these kills. The PAF is believed to have evaluated the French Dassault Mirage 2000 in early 1981 and was planning to evaluate the F-16 Fighting Falcon afterwards. After

6059-615: The same freedoms that were already present for their Christian , Sikh and other various counterparts . Some notable religious minority figures in the Pakistan Air Force include: Air Vice Marshal Eric Gordon Hall , a Christian who served as the Base Commander of Chaklala Air Base during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. Air Commodore Nazir Latif and Group Captain Cecil Chaudhry (both Christians) fought in

6142-400: The scene of the first airstrike to recover the dead and wounded were then killed by a second airstrike. While there is no confirmed death toll, it is widely believed that at least 30 civilian deaths had occurred according to the military approximations, whereas a local official stated that at least 73 locals, including women and children, were killed. A six-member committee of tribal elders from

6225-403: The second day of operations. However, IAF Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh claimed that, despite having been qualitatively inferior to the PAF, the IAF allegedly achieved total air superiority in three days. Many publications have credited the PAF's successes in combat with the IAF to its U.S. -quality equipment, claiming it to be superior to the aircraft operated by the IAF and giving the PAF

6308-478: The time of independence of Pakistan from British India. It started with seven airbases scattered all over the provinces. After the partition of British India , Faqir of Ipi, a pashtun separatist leader rejected the creation of newly created Pakistan. In 1948, the Faqir of Ipi took control of North Waziristan 's Datta Khel area and declared the establishment of an independent Pashtunistan , with support from neighbouring Kingdom of Afghanistan . In response to

6391-707: Was accepted at Fort Worth in October 1982. Two F-16A and four F-16B were subsequently delivered to Pakistan in 1983, with the first F-16 arriving at PAF Base Sargodha (now known as PAF Base Mushaf) on 15 January 1983 flown by Squadron Leader Shahid Javed. The 34 remaining aircraft as part of Peace Gate II were delivered between 1983 and 1987. Between May 1986 and November 1988, the PAF's newly acquired F-16s had shot down at least eight intruding aircraft from Afghanistan . The first three of these (one Su-22 , one probable Su-22, and one An-26 ) were shot down by two pilots from No. 9 Squadron. Pilots of No. 14 Squadron destroyed

6474-566: Was close to signing a contract for the supply of 40 Dassault Mirage 2000s, equipped with Thomson-CSF RDM/7 radars from France, although U.S. sanctions also prevented this deal from finalizing. In mid-1994, it was reported that Russian manufacturers Sukhoi and Mikoyan were offering the Su-27 and MiG-29, but Pakistan was reported to be negotiating for supply of the Mirage 2000–5. French and Russian teams visited Pakistan on 27 November 1994 and it

6557-455: Was established on 15 August 1947 with the independence of Pakistan from British India. The RPAF began with a paper share allotment of 2,332 personnel, a fleet of 24 Tempest II fighter-bombers, 16 Hawker Typhoon fighters, two H.P.57 Halifax bombers, two Auster aircraft, twelve North American Harvard trainers and ten de Havilland Tiger Moth biplanes . Very few were available to the RPAF on

6640-461: Was identified as a US AWACS and the remaining five were recognized as F/A-18 jets of the US. These planes flew near the Pakistani border, but did not cross into the airspace of Pakistan," On the detection of an intrusion, PAF jets on air defence alert were scrambled and the PAF immediately took adequate operational measures as per standard operating procedure. The PAF aircraft continued their presence in

6723-820: Was issued a standing order to launch an immediate counter-attack in case of an air attack from India, after a call from the Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee to the Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari (the call later turned out to be a hoax). An initial investigation report revealed that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) reported the movement of some half-a-dozen planes near the Jalalabad border at 23:00 before American helicopters entered Abbottabad to kill Osama bin Laden . "One aircraft

6806-565: Was reported that after being rejected by the PAF, Sabre II had been superseded by the Super 7 and China was considering continuing its development. The American arms embargo had forced the PAF to come up with innovative solutions to keep all its combat infrastructure operational. The PAF hired Russia's Mikoyan Group as consultants, and design studies for the project began at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex . In 1995,

6889-483: Was speculated that the interest in Russian aircraft was to pressure France into reducing the price of the Mirage 2000. The stated requirement was for up to 40 aircraft. The Pakistan Air Force is believed to have had a primary role in the alleged evacuation of Taliban personnel by the Pakistani military from Afghanistan . However, Pakistani and American officials have denied any such airlift taking place. After

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