Pakistan Army Aviation Corps

The Pakistan Army Aviation Corps (Urdu: ﺁرمى ایویشن كور; Army Aviation Corps), abbreviated as Avn, is the aviation corps of the Pakistan Army, tasked with providing close aerial combat support and aerial logistics for the Pakistan Army.[1]

Pakistan Army aviation squadron's Mi-17 helicopter at the Skardu Airport.
Pakistan Army Aviation Corps
Urdu: ﺁرمى ایویشن كور
Cap Badge of Pakistan Army Aviation
Founded14 August 1947 - present
Country Pakistan
Branch Pakistan Army
TypeArmy aviation
Headquarters/GarrisonArmy Aviation Command, Rawalpindi
Engagementssee Military history of Pakistan
Decorations9×Sitara-i-Jurat
13×Sitara-i-Basalat
15xTamgha-i-Basalat
COAS Commendation Cards
Imtiazi Sanads
Battle honoursChumak (Siachin) Saviours
Commanders
General Officer CommandingMaj Gen Nadeem Yousaf
Notable
commanders		Lt Gen AB Awan
Brigadier Jabbar
Maj Gen Azam
Brigadier Zaka Bhangoo
Brigadier M Ahmed Raashid
Maj Gen Waqar Ahmed Kingravi
Maj Gen Nasir Dilawar Shah
Brigadier Hamid Chaudhry
Aircraft flown
Attack helicopterMi-35M Hind-E
Multirole helicopterAW139
Bell 412
Trainer helicopterEnstrom 280FX
Schweizer 300C
Utility helicopter206 JetRanger
Alouette III
Eurocopter Écureuil
Eurocopter Fennec
Mi-17/171
SA 315B Lama
SA 330 Puma
UH-1 Huey
ReconnaissanceBeechcraft Super King Air 350i
TransportBeechcraft Super King Air 350
Bombardier Challenger 605
Cessna 206 Stationair
Cessna 208 Caravan
Cessna Citation V
Cessna Citation Bravo
Gulfstream G450
Harbin Y-12
Turbo Commander 690C

History

Originally formed by British Army Air Corps in 1942, the entire unit was transferred to Pakistan in 1947.[1] The officers and personnel were part of the Air Observation Post who were deployed in support of Punjab Boundary Force. Later the entire group was stationed at Chaklala Air Force Base before the partition of India.[1]

Initially part of Pakistan Air Force, the Corps was split into the new service and became part of Pakistan Army in 1958.[2] The Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering started to maintain the aircraft and helicopters given by the United States Army Aviation Branch, opening its own aviation school in 1959.[3]

Since the 1960s, the corps expanded in momentum, manpower, and its operational scope has widened.[3] By the 1970s, the Corps became a fighting air component of the Pakistan Army, with its attack helicopters becoming the backbone of military operations.[3] The Corps has become an integral part of Pakistan Army's every imitated operations, and came to public and international notice in the 1970s after initiating, and successfully quelling, the serious civil war in Balochistan.[2]

It is also a most decorated Corps of Pakistan Army, with more national citations and awards conferred and bestowed to this Corps than any combatant corps of Pakistan Army. Although it came into existence in 1947, the corps was given a full commission in 1977.[2]

Combat operations

As for its war capabilities, the Corps has a long history; participating in every conflict and war with India, they also led and flew bombing and combat missions in the Afghanistan war, Somalian War, Sierra Leone war, Mozambique war, Sri Lankan war Bosnian war, and recently, the War in North-West Pakistan. The corps has actively participated in Siachin Conflict, Kargil Conflict and War on Terror. The daring pilots of Pakistan Army Aviation have conducted some of the most historic and difficult missions in Aviation history, in pursuit of which some of them laid down their lives. They are known for their professionalism for high altitude flying, combat, assault and rescue missions.[1]

The Corps also initiated the non-combatant operations in 2005, when it led a massive airlift and re-location mission after the Kashmir earthquake.[2] In 1991, the Corps was stationed in Bangladesh, where they completed its non-combat mission after the country was hit with a cyclone.[2] Since its inception, the Corps has become a significant combatant arm of the Pakistan Army, poised for a definite and critical role be it peace or war.[1]

Aircraft inventory

Pakistan Army operates 281+ helicopters alongside several fixed-wing aircraft.

3 CAIC Z-10 attack helicopters of China were delivered for trial use so that orders could be made in the future. However, as of 2018, no orders have been made further and replaced by TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK, this could mean that these 3 helicopters were returned with no follow-up order.

30 TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK worth $1.5 billion is on order however production is still on hold due to the United States not givening export license for the engine, which of American orgin. New Turkish indigenous engine as a replacement is currently on trial.[4]

15 Bell AH-1Z Viper with Hellfire missiles, equipment and support worth $952 million is on order but deliveries on hold due to political tensions between the U.S. and Pakistan.[5]

Pakistan Army again showing interests in Chinese all-weather, multirole CAIC Z-10ME which is the advanced & upgraded variant of CAIC Z-10 if Turkey and the United States fail to deliver on their orders of the T129 and AH-1Z respectively.[6]

Aircraft/System Photo Origin Role Variant Quantity Note Service period
Helicopters
Bell AH-1 Cobra  United States Attack AH-1F 50[7] Modernized & upgraded. 1985–present
Mil Mi-35  Russia Attack Mi-35M3 4[7] 2018–present
Airbus Helicopters H125M  France Armed
Scout		 AS550 C332[7]2009–present
Mil Mi-17  Russia SAR
Utility
Transport		 Mi-171 48[7] 1996–present
AgustaWestland AW139  Italy SAR
Utility
Transport		 AW139M 25[7][8] Also used as VIP transport. 2017–present
Aérospatiale/IAR SA 330 Puma  France
 Romania		 SAR
Utility
Transport		 330L 43[7] 1977–present
Bell 412  United States Liaison
Utility		 412EP 31[7] 2004–present
Bell UH-1 Iroquois  United States Liaison
Utility		 UH-1H 1[7] 1970s
Aérospatiale Alouette III  France Light Utility SA 316B 13[7] 1967–present
Aérospatiale Lama  France Light Utility SA 315B 17[7] 1986–present
Enstrom F-28  United States Trainer 280FX 19[7] 2018–present
Schweizer 300  United States Trainer 300C 15[7] 1993–present
Bell 206 JetRanger  United States Trainer 206B 18[7] 1975–present
Fixed-wing Aircraft
PAC MFI-17 Mushshak  Pakistan Trainer 214[7]
Beechcraft Super King Air  United States Reconnaissance 350i 3[7] for SIGINT & ISR
 United States Transport 350ER 6[7]
Cessna 208 Caravan  United States MEDEVAC
Utility		 208B 13[7]
Cessna 206 Stationair  United States MEDEVAC T206H 4[9]
Harbin Y-12  China Utility Y-12(II)/F 4[7]
Turbo Commander  United States Utility 690C 2[7]
Cessna Citation II  United States VIP Transport Citation Bravo 1[7]
Cessna Citation V  United States VIP Transport Citation Ultra 1[10]
Gulfstream IV  United States VIP Transport G450 1[11]

Retired Aircraft

Notable accidents and incidents

See also

References
  1. PA, Pakistan Army. "Army Aviation-Pakistan Army". Pakistan Army. Pakistan Army Aviation Corps. Archived from the original on 17 November 2012. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  2. Global Security. "Army Aviation Corps". Global Security inc. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  3. The United States Government (CIA Fact Book) (2011). Pakistan Intelligence and Security Activities Army Aviation Corps. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government. p. 259. ISBN 978-0-7397-1194-1. Archived from the original on 2014-07-04. Retrieved 2016-11-03.
  4. "Turkey First Indigenous Helicopter Engine to be Ready for Integration This Year".
  5. "Nine Pakistan AH-1Z now stored at AMARG". AirForces Monthly. Key Publishing. May 2019. p. 26.
  6. "Janes | Latest defence and security news".
  7. "World Air Forces 2022". Flightglobal Insight. 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  8. "List of AgustaWestland AW139 helicopters in Pakistan". Helis.com. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  9. Siddiqui, Naveed (31 March 2017). "Pakistan Army receives six Cessna aircraft from US". dawn.com. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  10. "Cessna 560 Citation V - Pakistan - Army". airliners.net. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  11. "Gulfstream G450". jetphotos.com. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  12. "Eight killed as UN helicopter crashes in eastern DRC". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  13. "Six Pakistan Army officers, soldiers martyred in UN copter crash". The Express Tribune. 2022-03-29. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  14. Siddiqui, Naveed (2022-03-29). "Six Pakistani officers, soldiers martyred in helicopter crash in Congo: ISPR". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  15. France-Presse, Agence (2022-03-29). "Eight UN peacekeepers killed in helicopter crash in DRC". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.