No. 27 Squadron Zarrars | |
---|---|
Active | 2007 - Present |
Country | Pakistan |
Allegiance | Pakistan Armed Forces |
Branch | Pakistan Air Force |
Role | Tactical Attack |
Part of |
|
Airbase | PAF Base Rafiqui |
Nickname(s) | Zarrars |
Motto(s) | دو نیم ان کی ٹھوکر سے صحرا و دریا (Persian for 'The desert and the river from their stumble') |
Aircraft | Dassault Mirage 5F ROSE-III |
Engagements | |
Insignia | |
Patch |
The No. 27 Squadron, nicknamed Zarrars, is a tactical attack squadron from the No. 34 Wing of the Pakistan Air Force's Northern Air Command. It is currently deployed at Rafiqui Airbase and operates the Dassault Mirage-VEF ROSE-III aircraft. [1] [2] [3] [4]
The squadron was formally raised on 19 April 2007 at PAF Base Rafiqui and equipped with the upgraded Dassault Mirage-5EF ROSE-III combat aircraft. The first Officer Commanding (OC) was Wing Commander Shafqat Mushtaq and the first Senior Engineering Officer was Squadron Leader Najam-ul-Hasnain. [5] [6] [7]
After the spillover of militants & terrorists from Afghanistan into the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province during the US invasion, The Zarrars were tasked to carry out air strikes throughout the former FATA & NWFP regions. In FATA, it took part in Operation Khwakh Ba De Sham and Operation Rah-e-Nijat supporting the army and local law enforcement. [4]
As part of Operation Burq in 2009, the squadron carried out heavy air strikes on TTP positions in Swat valley in support of the army and local law enforcment's offensive. [3]
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 horizontal flight, a feat which was achieved on 24 October 1958.
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