No. 5 Squadron, named the Falcons, is a
Pakistan Air Force fighter squadron, the second oldest fighter squadron since the PAF's creation in 1947.
History
The squadron was established as part of the Royal Pakistan Air Force on 15 August 1947, equipped with eight
Hawker Tempest II
The Hawker Tempest is a British fighter aircraft that was primarily used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the Second World War. The Tempest, originally known as the ''Typhoon II'', was an improved derivative of the Hawker Typhoon, intended to a ...
fighters and commanded by Squadron Leader Zaheer Ahmad. The unit was based at Miranshah and was suffering from inadequate numbers of technical staff. Most of the squadron's personnel were inherited from the
Royal Indian Air Force No. 1 Squadron. In December 1947 the squadron provided cover to the
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...
units pulling out from Razmak during '
Operation Curzon.'
In the early 1950s the unit was converted to fly the
Hawker Sea Fury.
The squadron's
F-86 Sabres were replaced in 1967 with the
Dassault Mirage IIIE
The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizonta ...
and its role changed to tactical attack. The unit was made fully operational and, during the 1971 Indo-Pak War, over 200 missions were flown in day and night.
The squadron's reconnaissance role is performed year-round along the entire eastern border with Mirage III/5 reconnaissance variants and reconnaissance pods supported by other PAF aircraft and ground-based radars. These duties require the squadron to be split up and deployed at different locations throughout the year. Reconnaissance duties are in addition to monthly Air Defence Alert (ADA) and training.
In 2010 the squadron was re-equipped with the
F-16C/D Block 52+, the old Mirage III/5 being transferred to other units. As well as air-to-air and air-to-ground armaments such as the
AIM-120 AMRAAM
The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, or AMRAAM (pronounced ), is an American beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) capable of all-weather day-and-night operations. It is 7 inches (18 cm) in diameter, and employs ...
, the new F-16s are also equipped with new Goodrich DB-110 reconnaissance pods. These have seen service in the skies over North West Pakistan against the insurgency there, providing high resolution infra-red imagery and maps to the Pakistani forces.
Awards
* The Pakistani Inter-Squadron Armament Trophy 1952
* The Pakistani Inter-Squadron Maintenance Efficiency Trophy (1991, 1992, 1995)
* The Pakistani Inter-Squadron Armament Competition (ISAC) 1996 – fourth place overall.
Gallery
File:Pakistan Air Force F-16D 10806 Falcons (28928474790).jpg, A Pakistani F-16 Block-52 from the No. 5 Squadron
File:Pakistani F-16C Viper.jpg, A Pakistani F-16 Block-52 from the No. 5 Squadron
File:Pakistani F-16.jpg, A Pakistani F-16 Block-52 from the No. 5 Squadron
File:New F-16 block 52 of PAF.JPG, A Pakistani F-16 Block-52 from the No. 5 Squadron
See also
*
List of Pakistan Air Force squadrons
*
No. 9 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force)
No. 9 Squadron, named the ''Griffins'', is a Pakistan Air Force fighter squadron assigned to the No. 38 Multi-Role Wing of the PAF Central Air Command. The squadron is stationed at PAF Base Mushaf, Sargodha. It was the PAF's first fighter squ ...
References
External links
{{Pakistan Air Force squadrons
Pakistan Air Force squadrons