Sharbat Ali Changezi

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Sharbat Ali Changezi
شربت علی چنگیزی
Sharbat Ali Changezi.jpg
Changezi in 1966
Commander PAF Base Masroor
In office
June 1980 July 1982
Preceding Commands
Awards See list

Sharbat Ali Changezi [a] (born 10 March 1932) is a retired three-star rank air officer of the Pakistan Air Force and former fighter pilot.

Contents

In 1955, Changezi notably refused to meet the Afghan Monarch Zahir Shah, while he was on visit to Pakistan, because of the ill-treatment meted out to the Hazara people in Afghanistan. [1] [2]

Early life and family

Sharbat Ali Changezi was born on 10 March 1932 in Quetta. His father, Haji Ahmed Ali, was the chief of the Behsudi (Hazara tribe) in Quetta and died in April 1976. [3]

Sharbat's brother, Shoukat Ali Changezi, who is 20 years younger, started his bodybuilding career at a small club in a run-down building in Quetta City. His dedication to the sport, along with the support from committed but uncertified elders, helped him advance. This support enabled him to move to Norway, where he fully realized his potential. Shortly after his arrival, he gained international recognition in bodybuilding, winning titles such as Mr. Oslo and Mr. Norway twice. He is now a prominent figure in the bodybuilding community in Scandinavia. [4] [5]

Sharbat's sister, Professor Fatima Changezi, was the first among Hazara women to graduate from college. She became a teacher at the Government Girls College, Quetta where she taught Farsi. [3]

In 1976, Sharbat recalled, "My sister Fatima Changezi was the first Hazara girl who went to a college, immediately there after the late Shaikh Al-Haj Ali Nazar, a religious scholar, vituperated from the pulpit against my father, the late Haji Ahmed Ali Khan, for sending his daughter to college. This put an end to my sister's further studies. After a few years, however, the then Major (now retired Colonel) Barkat Ali spoke to my father and both of them resolved to send their daughters to college. Fatima Changezi is today a lecturer in Persian in the education department of Baluchistan. Colonel Barkat Ali's daughter is doing her doctorate in Persian in Tehran. It is interesting to note that Al-Haj Shaikh Ali Nazar, himself sent his daughter to school after about 20 years." [3]

Career with the Airforce

1965 War service

Changezi was involved in a dogfight with Indian warplanes over Lahore district in which he and his wingman shot down Indian planes. [6]

1971 War service

During the 1971 war, Changezi was the officer commanding of the No. 26 Squadron of the PAF flying F-86 Sabres.

Awards and decorations

PAF GDP Red.png
PAF GoldenEagleAward.png
Hilal-e-Imtiaz.png Sitara-e-Imtiaz.png Sitara-e-Basalat.png
Tamgha-e-Diffa.png Sitara-e-Harb 1965 War Ribbon.png Sitara-e-Harb 1971 War.png War Medal 1965(Tamgha-e-Jang, A.H.1385).png
Tamgha-e-Jang 1971 War.png Tamgha-e-Sad Saala Jashan-e-Wiladat-e-Quaid-e-Azam.png Republic Medal 1956 (Pakistan).png Hijri Tamgha.png
PAF GD(P) Badge RED (More than 3000 Flying Hours)
Golden Eagle Award (Pakistan)
(Exceptional Fighter Pilot)
Hilal-i-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Crescent of Excellence)

Sitara-i-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Star of Excellence)

Sitara-e-Basalat

(Star of Valour)

Tamgha-e-Diffa

(Defence Medal)

1. 1965 War Clasp

2. 1971 War Clasp

Sitara-e-Harb 1965 War

(War Star 1965)

Sitara-e-Harb 1971 War

(War Star 1971)

Tamgha-e-Jang 1965 War

(War Medal 1965)

Tamgha-e-Jang 1971 War

(War Medal 1971)

Tamgha-e-Sad Saala Jashan-e-Wiladat-e-Quaid-e-Azam

(100th Birth Anniversary of Muhammad Ali Jinnah)

1976

Tamgha-e-Qayam-e-Jamhuria

(Republic Commemoration Medal)

1956

Hijri Tamgha

(Hijri Medal)

1979

See also

Notes

  1. Urdu: شربت على ݘݩگݐڒی

References

  1. Nadir Hassan (18 May 2012). "Planned Extermination: Balochistan's Shia Hazara Community". Newsline . Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  2. "Planned Extermination: Balochistan's Shia Hazara Community". Newsline. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  3. 1 2 3 Owtadolajam, Mohammad (2006). A Sociological Study of the Hazara Tribe in Balochistan. p. 184-85.
  4. Hussain, Sakhawat (26 April 2020). "Youth and the Culture of Sports in Balochistan".
  5. Yusufzai, Rahimullah (2013). "Hazaras' thousand woes". The News. Archived from the original on 29 March 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2023. Musa's son-in-law Air Marshal Sharbat Ali Changezi was another member of the Hazara ethnic group...
  6. "Air Battle over Lahore 20 September, 1965". Defence Journal. Archived from the original on 29 August 2000.