| Administrative Corps of the Pakistan Army | ||||
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The Pakistan Army Corps of Aviation is a military administrative and combined arms service branch of the Pakistan Army. [1] The Aviation Corps is tasked with configuration of all army aviation aircraft and provides principle close aerial combat support and aerial logistics for the Pakistan Army. [1]
The earliest use of aircraft by the army can be traced to the air observation posts (Air OP), where aeroplanes were used during the World War I to help artillery spotters (Forward Observation Officers) to locate and direct artillery fire to targets on the ground. This role was improved upon and further refined in the World War II. The Army Aviation wing of the Royal Air Force was established in India at in 1942. No. 656 Air OP Squadron (RAF), the first Air OP unit reached the Indian subcontinent in 1943 to assist the operations in the Burma campaign. Following the war, 659 Squadron of the Royal Air Force, which had played an important role as an air observation post unit and worked closely with Army units in artillery spotting and liaison was despatched to India on October 1945. [2] On 14 August 1947, No.659 (Air OP) Squadron was disbanded at Lahore (which was deployed there in support of the Punjab Boundary Commission) and partitioned between India and Pakistan. [3] On the next day the Air OP Squadron became part of the Pakistan Air Force as "No.1 Air Observation Post Flight". No. 1 Air Observation Post Flight was converted into a squadron, and on 20th June 1956, No. 1 Air OP Squadron was officially raised. It was commissioned in the Pakistan Army after its personnel were trained and certified in the United States in 1958.: 32 [4] [5] The Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering started to maintain the aircraft and helicopters given by the U.S. Army's Aviation Branch, opening its own aviation school on 1 January 1959. [6]
Since the 1960s, the corps expanded in momentum, manpower, and its operational scope has widened. [6] The Aviation Corps became a combat support branch when it inducted its first attack helicopters from Iran in 1970. [6] Although it came into existence in 1947, the corps was given a full commission on 2 March 1978. The Aviation Corps is commanded by an active-duty two star major-general, who serves as its director-general and functions directly under the Chief of the General Staff at the Army GHQ in Rawalpindi, Punjab. [7]
The Pakistan Army Aviation currently operates (393) helicopters along with (268) fixed-wing aircraft.
| Aircraft/System | Acquired | Retired | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auster 5 | 1947 | 1957 | |
| Auster AOP.6 | 1947 | 1957 | |
| Cessna O-1 Bird Dog | 1957 | 1990 | |
| Beechcraft U-8F Seminole | 1963 | 1983 | |
| Bell OH-13 Sioux | 1964 | 1990 | The first helicopters operated by Pakistan Army. The were inducted and first flown on 24 September 1964. |
| Bell Model 47 | 1964 | 1990 | |
| Mil Mi-8 | 1969 | 1998 | Acquired on 21 January 1969. |
 Administrative Corps of the Pakistan Army | ||
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