No. 6 Squadron, nicknamed the Antelopes, is a transport squadron of the Pakistan Air Force. It is the PAF's oldest squadron which is currently based at Nur Khan Air Base and operates the C-130 & CN-235 transport aircraft.[1][2][3][4]
The squadron was formed as No. 6 Sqn RIAF, a fighter-reconnaissance unit at Trichinopoly (now Tiruchirapally) on 1 December 1942 under the command of Squadron Leader Mehar Singh. It participated in the Royal Indian Air Force's tenth anniversary review at Ambala, and received an award for "the best looking aircraft". The squadron continued working-up, until November that year.[5]
In November 1943, flying the Hawker Hurricane FR.IIb, No 6 Sqn RIAF moved to Cox's Bazar as a part of the RAF Third Tactical Air Force (Third TAF) for the Second Arakan Campaign. During this campaign, No 6 Squadron was the only specialist reconnaissance unit available to support the Fourteenth Army on this front, earning the name "The Eyes of the Fourteenth Army". They were also dubbed "the Arakan Twins" for flying in the standard tactical reconnaissance pairing of Leader and Weaver. Ret urning from his Arakan Front visit in mid-January 1944, General Sir William Slim, GOC Fourteenth Army, wrote in his memoirs how impressed he was with this reconnaissance squadron.[5]
For his services during the squadron's tour of operations, Flight-Lieutenant Rawal Singh was awarded the MBE, and Sergeant BM Kothari, the head of the photographic section, received the British Empire Medal. In addition, Flying Officer (later Air Commodore) JD Aquino and Pilot Officer (later Wing Commander) LRD Blunt were commended by the Air Officer Commanding.[6]
During the 1947 war, the squadron carried out regular supply drops in Azad Kashmir for troops and villages that had been cut off by snow. Dakota pilots had to fly between the region's mountains, because their fully loaded aircraft had a ceiling of around 10,000ft, while the surrounding mountain peaks were 16,000–20,000ft high. In November 1948 the squadron dropped 40,000kg of supplies while operating from Risalpur and Peshawar. On 4 November 1948, a Dakota was attacked by two Hawker Tempest fighters of the Indian Air Force, but Flying Officer Mukhtar Dogar managed to evade the fighters.
The RPAF purchased a large number of Bristol Freighter transports for No. 6 Squadron in early 1950. The Freighter's fuel capacity enabled the squadron to fly longer transport and communication sorties. Some of the Freighters were modified in 1955 to carry a 1,800kg "block-buster" bomb under each wing, and limited training in night bombing was undertaken. Similar operations occurred later with the C-130 Hercules. Freighters would be used in varying climatic and geographical conditions, such as the snowbound mountains in Kashmir, the southern Punjabi deserts, and East Pakistan's tropical forests. The 1952 floods led to the unit's deployment for large-scale food supply drops, for which the squadron received an award on 17 August 1952, from the Governor of the Punjab. "Operation Snow Drop" began on 15 November 1953, and involved dropping supplies in Pakistan's Northern Areas from PAF Base Chaklala. From 15 to 30 November 1953, the Antelopes flew 780 hours and dropped 363,000kg of supplies. Replacement of the Bristol Freighter began in 1963 with the delivery of four Lockheed C-130B Hercules transports, which enabled the squadron to fly over the Karakoram mountains rather than between them, thus improving flight safety.[7]
In the India–Pakistan war of 1965 the Antelopes dropped parachute commandos into Indian territory in a night-time mission involving three C-130B transports. Just before the 1965 war started, the squadron's commanding officer, Wing CommanderEric Gordan Hall, had the idea of making up for the PAF's deficiency in heavy bombers by modifying the Hercules to carry bombs.[8] It was converted to carry 10,000kg of bombs, which were rolled out on pallets from the rear ramp, and over 21 night-time bombing raids were flown against Indian forces approaching for the Battles of Chawinda and Pul Kanjari. Support missions for troops in the Northern Areas were continued after the war.[citation needed]
With the unstable political situations at the end of 1970 and the resulting civil unrest, the Antelopes moved a large number of troops to East Pakistan and assisted in flood relief operations there. India stopped the PAF flying over its territory in 1971, and the squadron had to fly to East Pakistan via Sri Lanka. Two of the unit's C-130 transports were deployed to Dhaka from March 71 until the 1971 India–Pakistan war began on 3 December 1971. They were used to evacuate soldiers and civilians from hostile areas of East Pakistan– in one sortie a single C-130 evacuated 365 people from Sylhet to Dhaka. During the 1971 war, No. 6 Squadron flew bombing missions from West Pakistan in the same manner as those flown during the 1965 war, and no transport aircraft were lost during these sorties.[citation needed]
The squadron was regularly involved in "Exercise Nejat", a series of CENTO exercises held at PAF Base Masroor, Rezayiah, in Iran, Turkey, and England.[citation needed]
No. 6 Squadron Globe Trotter C-130 flies over McChord Air Force Base, United States.
The bomber squadron saw aerial action during the 1992–96 civil war in Afghanistan. In September 1995, Afghan insurgents attacked and destroyed the Pakistani embassy in Afghanistan, leaving one person killed and dozens injured, including the ambassador. On 7 September 1995, a C-130 aircraft was sent to Kabul for the recovery and evacuation of the embassy staff.[citation needed] The Pakistan Army and Navy dispatched commandos belonging to SSG(N), SSG Division, and the 50th Airborne Division. The aircraft landed in very hostile conditions, but the crew managed to evacuate everyone within half an hour.
In 2009, the squadron performed hundreds of airborne missions, including some begun by the Pakistan Army. They parachuted hundreds of Pakistani paratroopers into the Swat Valley and took part in operations in South Waziristan. During Operation Black Thunderstorm, Operation Rah e Raast, and Operation Rah-e-Nijat, the squadron parachuted thousands of Pakistani troops and flew continuously, day and night.
On 10 May, the Indian Air Force carried out airstrikes on the Nur Khan Airbase, targeting runways and military infrastructure.[11][12][13][14] According to Indian defense officials, the operation was intended as a "calibrated response" to cross-border attacks. According to an eye-witness and two Pakistani security officials, the attack on Nur Khan airbase saw at least two missile strikes as well as drone attacks. Pakistan’s military stated that its air defense systems intercepted most of the incoming missiles, and no critical assets were lost. However, according to a Reuters citing an official who visited the base the next day, the barrage hit two roofs and hit the hangar of a refueling plane.[15][10] According to William Goodhind, a geospatial analyst at Contested Ground, two mobile control centers at the Nur Khan airbase were damaged. Further The Washington Post, also reported videos recorded from a parking lot nearby which "showed smoke billowing from the damaged area".[16] According to Air Forces Monthly, the missiles struck the operations room of the 35th Composite Transport Wing, destroying two fuel trucks and collaterally damaging one Lockheed C-130 Hercules of the No. 6 Squadron PAF at the aforementioned hangar.[17]
↑Ellis-Petersen, Hannah; Baloch, Shah Meer (10 May 2025). "India and Pakistan accuse each other of cross-border attacks on military bases". The Guardian. Retrieved 12 May 2025. Nur Khan airbase is in Rawalpindi, where the military has its headquarters, and is around 6 miles from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. In the aftermath of the strikes, Pakistan shut down its air space. The strike on Nur Khan caused mass panic in the densely populated area. Video from the scene shared on social media showed flames and smoke billowing into the night sky, with residents running into the streets. "There was a loud explosion which woke everyone up. It was so scary, everyone is still in a panic," said one resident living nearby.
↑Philip, Snehesh Alex (9 May 2025). "ISPR says main logistics hub in Rawalpindi among 3 Pakistan Air Force bases targeted by Indian missiles". ThePrint. Retrieved 12 May 2025. Explosions were reported in the early hours of Saturday from three Pakistan air bases including the military's primary logistics hub the Nur Khan base in Rawalpindi, hours after Pakistan launched a fresh wave of drones and loitering munitions targeting several Indian cities, and particularly the Sirsa air base of the Indian Air Force (IAF). Pakistan military's information wing the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) confirmed the explosions, blaming them on an Indian missile attack. ISPR DG in a late night statement said India has targeted the Pakistan Air Force's (PAF) Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi district), Murid (Chakwal) and Rafiqui (Shorkot, Jhang district) air bases.
↑"How India and Pakistan pulled back from the brink with US-brokered ceasefire". Reuters. Retrieved 13 May 2025. The barrage took out two roofs and hit the hangar of a refuelling plane, which was airborne at the time, according to one of the officials, who visited the base the next day. A senior Indian military officer, however, told reporters on Sunday that an operations command center at Nur Khan had been hit.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Pakistan (since 1947)
British Raj (1942-47)
Pakistan Air Force 
Sitara-e-Jurat 
Tamgha-i-Jurat 
Imtiazi Sanad 
