In the wake of hostilities in Rann of Kutch, the PAF Air Headquarters decided to review its war plans as the threat of a wider conflagration loomed. Though the PAF and the IAFC-in-Cs had tacitly agreed not to use their air forces in Kutch which was a bizarre arrangement worked out over a phone call…
A call from the Vice Chief of Air Staff asking me if I wanted to fly the F-16 got an immediate positive response, notwithstanding the fact that I had last flown the F-16 three decades ago. The stated objective was for a few retired veterans to assess the capabilities of the much modified fighter, as well…
Development of MFI-15 Safari Björn Andreasson, a Swedish aeronautical engineer working for Convair USA designed his home-built BA-7 in 1958, incorporating the distinctive shoulder-mounted wing with a forward sweep. Returning to Sweden in 1960 Andreasson joined Malmö Flygindustri where he designed an improved version of BA-7 that went into production as the MFI-9 Junior, along…
Routledge Handbook of Air Power is a comprehensive study of various aspects of air power, ranging from the historical to the futuristic. It examines as many as thirty topics related to the utility and applicability of contemporary air power. The book is edited by John Andreas Olsen, a serving Colonel in the Norwegian Air Force,…
My recently published book, In the Ring and on its Feet – PAF in the 1971 Indo-Pak War, was commented upon by a former Chief of Staff of the Indian Navy a couple of months ago, in an article on an Indian web portal ‘The Print’. Though Admiral Arun Prakash was the Chief of Naval…
Looking at the grotesque disparity between the Air Forces arrayed against each other in the Eastern wing – one PAF combat squadron versus twelve[1] of IAF – one cannot but agree that the idea of ‘defence of East lies in the West’ reflected a realistic appraisal of the grim situation by the Pakistani military strategists….
The Indian Army had responded vigorously to Pakistani infiltration of irregular forces into Kashmir which had started in August 1965. With a double pincer on Badori bulge, the Indians had captured the strategic Haji Pir Pass. Core areas in Azad (liberated) Kashmir including towns of Muzaffarabad and Mirpur lay threatened. The only way out of…
The loss of four Vampires on the opening day of the ’65 War was a major blow to the morale of the IAF and, it was felt in all quarters that something had to be done urgently. A grudge fight was, therefore, planned and the nimble Gnat was chosen as the most suitable fighter. Its…
With the launching of the Indian counter-stroke at Lahore-Kasur front on the morning of 6th September 1965, neutralisation of the PAF should have been a logical first step. Inexplicably, the PAF was allowed to operate with impunity, which ultimately led to the petering out of 15 Division’s thrust towards Lahore. The IAF, it seemed, was…
Faced with unexpectedly stiff resistance from Pakistan Army, the Indian offensive launched on 6th September 1965 in the Lahore-Kasur sector had floundered badly. Having failed to capture the vital bridges on BRBi Canal, XI Corps formations were unfavourably poised for further offensive operations towards Lahore. On a similar note, though Pakistan Army’s counter-offensive spearheaded by…
