Pakistan Army Aviation Corps

Pakistan Army Aviation Corps
Active 14 August 1947 -
Country  Pakistan
Branch  Pakistan Army
Type Military aviation
Headquarters/Garrison Qasim Army Aviation Base Rawalpindi
Engagements see Military history of Pakistan
Decorations 9×Sitara-i-Jurat
13×Sitara-i-Basalat
15xTamgha-i-Basalat
Commanders
Army Air Commander Maj.Gen Khalil Dar
Notable
commanders		 BGen Zhaka Bhangou
Aircraft flown
Attack AH-1 Cobra
Z-10 Fierce Thunderbolt
Bell AH-1Z Viper
IAR 330
Eurocopter Fennec
Utility helicopter Aerospatiale Alouette III
Aérospatiale Puma
Eurocopter AS350
Bell UH-1 Huey
Bell 412
206 Jet Ranger
Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama
Trainer Mushak
Transport Aero Commander 840
Cessna Citation Bravo
Mil Mi-17
Tanker Harbin Y-12

The Pakistan Army Aviation Corp (Urdu: ﺁرمى اويشن كور; Army Aviation Core), abbreviated as AAC, is an active combatant military administrative staff corps tasked with carrying out the military air operations, and responsible for doctrine, manning and configuration for all aviation unit.[1]

History

Originally formed by British Army Air Corps in 1942, the entire unit was transferred to Pakistan in 1947.[1] The officers and personnel were part of the Air Observation Post who were deployed in support of Punjab Boundary Force. Later the entire group was stationed at Chaklala Air Force Base before the partition of India.[1]

Initially part of PAF, the Corps was split into the new service and became part of Pakistan Army in 1958.[2] The Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering started to maintain the aircraft and helicopters given by the United States Army Aviation Branch, opening its own aviation school in 1959.[3]

Since the 1960s, the corps expanded in momentum, manpower, and its operational scope has widened.[3] By the 1970s, the Corps became a fighting air component of the Pakistan Army, with its attack helicopters becoming the backbone of military operations.[3] The Corps has become an integral part of Pakistan Army's every imitated operations, and came to public and international notice in the 1970s after initiating, and successfully quelling, the serious civil war in Balochistan.[2]

It is also a most decorated Corps of Pakistan Army, with more national citations and awards conferred and bestowed to this Corps than any combatant corps of Pakistan Army. Although it came into existence in 1947, the corps was given a full commission in 1977.[2]

Combat operations

As for its war capabilities, the Corps has a long history; participating in every conflict and war with India, they also led and flew bombing and combat missions in the Afghanistan war, Somalian War, Sierra Leone war, Mozambique war, Sri Lankan war Bosnian war, and recently, the War in North-West Pakistan.[1]

The Corps also initiated the non-combatant operations in 2005, when it led a massive airlift and re-location mission after the Kashmir earthquake.[2] In 1991, the Corps was stationed in Bangladesh, where they completed its non-combat mission after the country was hit with a cyclone.[2] Since its inception, the Corps has become a significant combatant arm of the Pakistan Army, poised for a definite and critical role be it peace or war.[1]

Aircraft inventory

Pakistan Army operates just over 270 helicopters alongside several fixed wing aircraft.

Aircraft/System Role Quantity Note
Z-10 Fierce Thunderbolt Attack helicopter 3 [4][5] 3 delivered and 17 total 
on order.
Bell AH-1Z Viper Attack helicopter 15 on order [6] Including 1000 Hellfire Block-2 missiles.
Mil MI-35M Hind-E
Attack helicopter 4 on Order Attack helicopter 
[7]
Bell AH-1F/S Cobra Attack helicopter 35[8] 20 AH-1S supplied by US between 1984 and 1986; 12 AH-1F acquired in 2007; One AH-1F squadron (14 helicopters) supplied in March 2010. 8 Ex-Jordanian AH-1S Cobras inducted in October 2013. Three lost to Crashes.
IAR 330 Attack helicopter 6 Small number in service.
Eurocopter Fennec Attack Helicocpter 20 Used as light attack helicopter and for Reconnaissance.
Harbin Y-12 Utility aircraft 2
Cessna Citation Bravo Transport aircraft 1[8]
Cessna Citation V Transport aircraft 1[8]
Aero Commander 840 Transport aircraft 2[8]
Mil Mi-17 Transport helicopter 75 [8]
Bell 206 Jet Ranger Utility helicopter 15 [8]
Bell 412 Utility helicopter 30[9]
Bell UH-1 Huey Utility helicopter 54[8] Large quantity Operated by Pakistan Rangers
Eurocopter AS350 Utility helicopter 15[8]
Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma Utility helicopter 65[8]
Aerospatiale SA.316 Alouette III Utility helicopter 30[8] Local production started in mid80,s.
Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama Utility helicopter 20 Mainly Operated by army in Siachen Glacier .
Beechcraft Super King Air SIGINT & ISR 8 Used for VIP purposes.

Retired Aircraft

.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 PA, Pakistan Army. "Army Aviation-Pakistan Army". Pakistan Army. Pakistan Army Aviation Corps. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Global Security. "Army Aviation Corps". Global Security inc. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 The United States Government (CIA Fact Book) (2011). Pakistan Intelligence and Security Activities Army Aviation Corps. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government. p. 259. ISBN 0-7397-1194-6.
  4. ↑ http://defence.pk/threads/pictures-video-of-the-three-z-10-helicopters-to-pakistan-updated.363256/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ↑ http://defence.pk/threads/z-10-test-flight-over-rawalpindi.368499/. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  6. ↑ =http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/air-space/strike/2015/04/07/pakistan-ah-1z-deal-dsca-hellfire-taliban-tribal-area-waziristan/25409157/.
  7. ↑ "Russia agrees to sell Pakistan four MI-35 attack helicopters - The Express Tribune". Retrieved 2015-08-19.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Directory: World Air Forces." Flight International, 11–17 November 2008. Retrieved: 1 August 2010.
  9. ↑ More Bell 412s for Pakistan’s Military
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