Muhammad Mahmood Alam
Encyclopedia
Air Commodore
Muhammad Mahmood Alam ( ,) is a retired Pakistani
fighter pilot, North American F-86 Sabre Flying ace
and one-star general who served with the Pakistan Air Force
. He was awarded the Sitara-e-Jurat
("The star of courage"), a Pakistani military decoration
, for his actions during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
.
(now Bangladesh
) with the onset of the Partition of India
. He is the eldest of a total of eleven siblings who are well-educated and in important positions around the world. His father died when he was young, and he himself had to take the rein
s of his family early in life. The family moved to West Pakistan
(now, Pakistan) after East Pakistan broke away to form Bangladesh in 1971. Contrary to later accusations that also embittered him towards the establishment, MM Alam always remained loyal to Pakistan
and not to the newly created Bangladesh. In his one mission, five Indian fighters were downed in less than a minute by Alam, which explains his score with a special aiming and firing technique he developed.
. During this war he was involved in various dogfight
s while flying his F-86 Sabre
fighter. Pakistani sources claim that he downed nine Indian fighters, six of them Hawker Hunter
fighters of the Indian Air Force
, in air-to-air combat
. In one mission, five Indian aircraft
were downed in less than a minute by Alam, first four being in first 30 seconds, which explains his score with a special aiming and firing technique he developed. Alam's confirmed kills are as follows:
The Pakistan Air Force figures have been disputed by Indian sources which award Alam with four kills. They attribute one of the loss of Sqn Ldr Onkar Nath Kacker's aircraft to booster failure. They also claim that gun camera footage of Alam's kills is yet to be made public and therefore some of the kills cannot be confirmed.
fighters procured by the PAF
in 1967. However, his unpopularity with the top management of the PAF lead to removal of his command on the excuse that he was "not literate enough".
in 1982 and currently resides in Karachi
. One of the roads of Gulberg
in Lahore
is named after him as M. M. Alam road
.
is an economist
and a professor at Northeastern University
, Boston
. His brother M. Sajjad Alam is a particle physicist at SUNY Albany and is credited for discovering over a dozen particles. However he never married and lives alone in Karachi, often in the company of a vast collection of books, being an avid reader. Although always a spiritual person, he has become even more deeply involved in religion as he has aged..
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Muhammad Mahmood Alam ( ,) is a retired Pakistani
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
fighter pilot, North American F-86 Sabre Flying ace
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
and one-star general who served with the Pakistan Air Force
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
. He was awarded the Sitara-e-Jurat
Sitara-e-Jurat
Sitara-e-Jurat is the third highest military award of Pakistan. It was established in 1957 after Pakistan became a Republic; however, it was instituted retrospectively back to 1947...
("The star of courage"), a Pakistani military decoration
Military decoration
A military decoration is a decoration given to military personnel or units for heroism in battle or distinguished service. They are designed to be worn on military uniform....
, for his actions during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. This conflict became known as the Second Kashmir War fought by India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir, the first having been fought in 1947...
.
Early life
Alam is a Bengali born on 6 July 1935 in Calcutta, British India. His family migrated to East PakistanEast Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
(now Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
) with the onset of the Partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
. He is the eldest of a total of eleven siblings who are well-educated and in important positions around the world. His father died when he was young, and he himself had to take the rein
Rein
Reins are items of horse tack, used to direct a horse or other animal used for riding or driving. Reins can be made of leather, nylon, metal, or other materials, and attach to a bridle via either its bit or its noseband.-Use for riding:...
s of his family early in life. The family moved to West Pakistan
West Pakistan
West Pakistan , common name West-Pakistan , in the period between its establishment on 22 November 1955 to disintegration on December 16, 1971. This period, during which, Pakistan was divided, ended when East-Pakistan was disintegrated and succeeded to become which is now what is known as Bangladesh...
(now, Pakistan) after East Pakistan broke away to form Bangladesh in 1971. Contrary to later accusations that also embittered him towards the establishment, MM Alam always remained loyal to Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and not to the newly created Bangladesh. In his one mission, five Indian fighters were downed in less than a minute by Alam, which explains his score with a special aiming and firing technique he developed.
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Alam is well-known for his actions during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965 when he was posted at SargodhaSargodha
Sargodha is a city in the Sargodha District of Punjab province, Pakistan.Sargodha is located in the northwest of Pakistan. It is the eleventh largest city of Pakistan and also known as Pakistan's best citrus-producing area. It is an agricultural trade centre with various industries...
. During this war he was involved in various dogfight
Dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
s while flying his F-86 Sabre
F-86 Sabre
The North American F-86 Sabre was a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as America's first swept wing fighter which could counter the similarly-winged Soviet MiG-15 in high speed dogfights over the skies of the Korean War...
fighter. Pakistani sources claim that he downed nine Indian fighters, six of them Hawker Hunter
Hawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
fighters of the Indian Air Force
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force is the air arm of the Indian armed forces. Its primary responsibility is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during a conflict...
, in air-to-air combat
Dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
. In one mission, five Indian aircraft
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force is the air arm of the Indian armed forces. Its primary responsibility is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during a conflict...
were downed in less than a minute by Alam, first four being in first 30 seconds, which explains his score with a special aiming and firing technique he developed. Alam's confirmed kills are as follows:
- 6 September 1965, 1× Hawker HunterHawker HunterThe Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
- Squadron LeaderSquadron LeaderSquadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
Ajit Kumar Rawlley, No. 7 Sqn, KIAKilled in actionKilled in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
near Tarn TaranTarn TaranTarn Taran may refer to:*Tarn Taran Sahib, a city in Tarn Taran district, Punjab, India*Tarn Taran district, a district in Punjab, India*Tarn Taran...
.
- Squadron Leader
- 7 September 1965, 3× Hawker HunterHawker HunterThe Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
s- Squadron LeaderSquadron LeaderSquadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
Onkar Nath Kacker, No. 27 Sqn, POWPrisoner of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict... - Squadron LeaderSquadron LeaderSquadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
Suresh B Bhagwat - Flying OfficerFlying OfficerFlying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...
Jagdev Singh Brar, No. 7 Sqn, KIAKilled in actionKilled in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
, near Sangla HillSangla HillSangla Hill is a tehsil located in Nankana Sahib District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan.- Introduction :Sangla hill is a tehsil under district Nankana Sahib...
.
- Squadron Leader
- September 16, 1965, 1× Hawker HunterHawker HunterThe Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
- Flying Officer Farokh Dara Bunsha, No. 7 Sqn, KIA, near AmritsarAmritsarAmritsar is a city in the northern part of India and is the administrative headquarters of Amritsar district in the state of Punjab, India. The 2001 Indian census reported the population of the city to be over 1,500,000, with that of the entire district numbering 3,695,077...
.
- Flying Officer Farokh Dara Bunsha, No. 7 Sqn, KIA, near Amritsar
The Pakistan Air Force figures have been disputed by Indian sources which award Alam with four kills. They attribute one of the loss of Sqn Ldr Onkar Nath Kacker's aircraft to booster failure. They also claim that gun camera footage of Alam's kills is yet to be made public and therefore some of the kills cannot be confirmed.
Transfer to Mirage III squadron
Alam was the commanding officer of the first squadron of Dassault Mirage IIIDassault Mirage III
The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
fighters procured by the PAF
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
in 1967. However, his unpopularity with the top management of the PAF lead to removal of his command on the excuse that he was "not literate enough".
Retirement
M.M. Alam retired as an Air CommodoreAir Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
in 1982 and currently resides in Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
. One of the roads of Gulberg
Gulberg (Lahore)
Gulberg is a residential and commercial area of Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It is bordered by the Allama Iqbal International Airport to the east, the Model Town development to the south, the Aitchison College campus to the north and the Shadman district to the west.The town is known for its upscale...
in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
is named after him as M. M. Alam road
M. M. Alam road
M. M. Alam road is a road in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It runs from Main Market to Firdous Market in Gulberg. The road runs parallel to famous Main Boulevard thus providing an alternate route and a huge business for restaurants, fashion boutiques, shopping malls, beauty saloons and décor stores...
.
Family
Alam's brother M. Shahid AlamM. Shahid Alam
Muhammad Shahid Alam, D.Phil, is a Pakistani economist, academic, and noted social scientist. He is a Professor of Economics at Northeastern University, Boston. He is on the Advisory Board of the Institute for Policy Research & Development, London....
is an economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
and a professor at Northeastern University
Northeastern University, Boston
Northeastern University , is a private, secular, coeducational research university in Boston, Massachusetts. Northeastern has eight colleges and offers undergraduate majors in 65 departments...
, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. His brother M. Sajjad Alam is a particle physicist at SUNY Albany and is credited for discovering over a dozen particles. However he never married and lives alone in Karachi, often in the company of a vast collection of books, being an avid reader. Although always a spiritual person, he has become even more deeply involved in religion as he has aged..
Citation
Official sources
- History of PAF - Government of PakistanGovernment of PakistanThe Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...
- "Laying the Sargodha Ghost to rest." Vayu Aerospace Review. November 1985
External links
- M.M. Alam: a fighter to the end, thenews.com.pk
- Muhammad Mahmood Alam, YesPakistan.com
- Citation of PAF Heros, Pakdef.info