The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force (RAF) based at RAF Waddington. The team was formed in late 1964 as an all-Royal Air Force team, replacing a number of unofficial teams that had been sponsored by RAF commands.
Number 31 Squadron, known as the Goldstars, is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The Squadron lays claim to being the first military unit to fly in India, where it was based from 1915 to 1947. Throughout the Cold War, No. 31 Squadron was based in West Germany, flying from RAF Laarbruch and RAF Brüggen. Between September 1984 and March 2019, the Goldstars operated the Panavia Tornado GR1/4, initially from RAF Brüggen and after August 2001 from RAF Marham, Norfolk. No. 31 Squadron was disbanded on 14 March 2019 at RAF Marham and reformed on 11 October 2023 at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire, equipped with the General Atomics Protector RG1.
No. 249 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force squadron, active in the sea-patrol, fighter and bomber roles during its existence. It was one of the top scoring fighter squadrons of the RAF in World War II.
No. 603 Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. On reforming on 1 October 1999, the primary role of 603 Squadron was as a Survive to Operate squadron, as well as providing force protection.
No. 7 Squadron IAF operates as a Special Munitions Delivery and air superiority unit. Based at Gwalior AFB, No. 7 Squadron forms a part of 40 Wing AF, Central Air Command.
Squadron Leader Sarfaraz Ahmed Rafiqui was a Pakistani fighter pilot who is known for his gallant actions in two of the aerial dogfights during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, and is a recipient of both the Hilal-e-Jurat and the Sitara-e-Jurat military awards from the Government of Pakistan.
The No. 3 Squadron IAF (Cobras) of the Indian Air Force (IAF) operates as a Close Air Support (CAS) and reconnaissance unit. Currently based at NAL Air Force Station, it falls under the Western Air Command, and forms the 46 wing of the IAF.
Operation Chengiz Khan was the code name assigned to the preemptive strikes carried out by the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) on the forward airbases and radar installations of the Indian Air Force (IAF) on the evening of 3 December 1971, and marked the formal initiation of hostilities of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. The operation targeted 11 of India's airfields and also included artillery strikes on Indian positions in Kashmir. The targets were the Indian Airbases of Amritsar, Ambala, Agra, Awantipur, Bikaner, Halwara, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Pathankot, Bhuj, Srinagar and Uttarlai and air defence radars at Amritsar and Faridkot.
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. It is awarded for gallantry or distinguished service in combat; and can be bestowed upon officers, junior commissioned officers, petty officers, warrant officers, soldiers, sailors, airmen, and equivalents in the Pakistan Army, Navy, Air Force, and various paramilitary forces under federal control, such as the Frontier Corps, the Frontier Constabulary, and the Pakistan Rangers. It may be considered to be roughly equivalent to the Military Cross and the Silver Star.
Sherdils is the formation aerobatics display team of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF). The Sherdils team is based at the Pakistan Air Force Academy, Risalpur, Pakistan and at present, it consists of nine Karakoram K-8P aircraft.
Number 601 Squadron is a squadron of the RAF Reserves, based in London. The squadron took part in the Battle of Britain, during which the first Americans to fly in World War II were members of the squadron.
Air Commodore Muhammad Zafar Masud also known as Mitty Masud, was a one star air officer in the Pakistan Air Force and a military strategist who was known for his role as air officer commanding of the Dacca airbase in East Pakistan.
No. 9 Squadron, named the Griffins, is a Pakistan Air Force fighter squadron assigned to the No. 38 Multi-Role Wing of the PAF Central Air Command. The squadron is stationed at PAF Base Mushaf, Sargodha. It was the PAF's first fighter squadron and has been commanded by seven Chiefs of Air Staff of the Pakistan Air Force. The squadron crest is a red griffin which symbolises strength, aggressiveness, and vigilance. Scrolls around the squadron crest display the battle honours Sargodha 65 and Karachi 71.The Griffins are considered as the PAF's most elite unit as well as its most senior.
Air Commodore Imtiaz BhattiSJ SI(M) SBt in Gujrat, British India, is a cyclist and a former Air Force pilot of Pakistan. He was the Pakistan cycling champion during his student days at Punjab Agriculture College, Lyallpur in late 1940s and early 1950s. He set national cycling records and represented Pakistan in the individual and team road race events at the 1952 Summer Olympics where he was placed 1st among the Asian cyclists and 25th in the world in the 1000 m time trial. Bhatti a veteran of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 flew 34 combat missions, the maximum from Pakistan during the war and is credited with confirmed downing of two Indian planes and damaging a third, in addition to participating in raids that destroyed the Amritsar radar and various other air defence and ground support missions.
Northumbrian Universities Air Squadron is a unit of the Royal Air Force which provides basic flying training, adventurous training and personal development skills to undergraduate students of the University of Durham, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumbria University, Sunderland University and Teesside University. The idea behind all University Air Squadrons is to allow potential RAF officers to experience life in service and to allow them to decide whether they are suited to it. There is no obligation to join up, unless a bursary is successfully applied for. NUAS is parented by RAF Leeming where it flies Grob Tutor aircraft. NUAS Town Headquarters (THQ) are in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Kilo Flight was the code name for the Mukti Bahini combat aviation formation during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. It consisted of one DHC-3 Otter plane and one Alouette III helicopter, both carrying rocket pods and machine guns for launching hit-and-run attacks on Pakistani targets, and one DC-3 Dakota for logistical missions. 9 Bengali pilots and 58 ex PAF personnel formed the unit under the command of Group Captain A. K. Khandker in September 1971. The aircraft were supplied by Indian Authorities and the formation was led by Squadron Leader Sultan Mahmud under the operational control of IAF base Jorhat. The unit started training in October 1971 at Dimapur in Nagaland, and this unit was the first to launch airstrikes on Pakistani targets in East Pakistan on December 4, 1971, by attacking oil depots at Narayanganj and Chittagong. In total the unit flew 90 sorties and 40 combat missions between December 4 and 16, 1971. After the war, this unit formed the core of the nascent Bangladesh Air Force.
Manchester and Salford Universities Air Squadron, abbreviated MASUAS, forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. MASUAS is one of fifteen University Air Squadrons that are spread out across Great Britain and it recruits from the universities in Manchester and Salford University.
The East Midlands Universities Air Squadron (EMUAS) is the Nottinghamshire-centred University Air Squadron for the East Midlands.
Air Commodore Masroor Hosain SPk was a one-star rank pioneering officer of the Pakistan Air Force, aerobatic pilot, fighter pilot, and captain of the RPAF's Hockey team during their tour to Australia and New Zealand in the summer of 1952.
Air Commodore Fuad Shahid Hussain SBt TPk better known as FS Hussain, F.S., King of Fury, and the Prince of Pilots, was among the pioneering officers of the Pakistan Air Force, a fighter pilot, aerobatic pilot, and one-star rank air officer. During WWII, his squadron was part of the BCOF in Imperial Japan, stationed on an aircraft carrier. While there, FS as an aerial photographer, was tasked with capturing images of the bombed-out cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, unaware of the radiation exposure risks at that time, which eventually led to his death while in service, as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Training) at the PAF Headquarters.
