Un-announced Pride of Performance 1965

 During the Indo-Pakistani war of 1965, the Indian and Pakistani Air Forces engaged in large-scale aerial combat for the first time. In the air war, which took place in September, both air forces conducted thousands of defensive and offensive sorties over Indian and Pakistani airspace. Both India and Pakistan claimed victory in the air war; Pakistan claimed to have destroyed 104 Indian aircraft and lost 19, and India claimed to have destroyed 73 Pakistani aircraft and lost 35 of its own. The air war ended in a stalemate.

(Mohammad Mahmood Alam aka MM Alam was a Pakistani fighter pilot who shot down five Indian fighter jets with his F-86 Sabre during the 1965 Lahore Front, becoming an "Ace in a Day" on 7th September 1965.)

The PAF's Sabres forced the IAF to send Folland Gnat fighters to the forward base at Pathankot; India used Mysteres flying at slow speed as bait to lure the Sabres to attack, and the waiting Gnats would take them on. Two Sabres were scrambled, but one had to turn back when the pilot could not jettison its fuel tanks. The other, flown by F/L Yusaf Ali Khan, spotted the IAF planes and tried positioning himself behind them before attacking. As Khan got them in his cross-hairs, however, he was surrounded by a group of Gnats under attack. A Lockheed F-104 Starfighter in the area was sent to the dogfight, and another one was scrambled from the base. The first Starfighter passed through the dogfight at supersonic speed; the Gnats, after scoring a kill, began to leave. IAF Squadron Leader Trevor Keelor of No. 23 Squadron claimed to have shot down an F-86 Sabre on 3 September for the IAF's first air-combat victory of the war, and received the Vir Chakra; however, the Sabre made it back to the base with the Power Supply Unit defective. It was immediately transported to Instrument Overhaul Shop PIA, booked to me for repair. Spare parts were not available, neither any drawing/repair manual was with PAF. Utilizing my one year experience a rectifier was found defective and was replaced from the local market enabling Sabre to fly again within five days. There was no need of any appreciation as making Sabre fly again is “Pride of Performance”