TheNo. 17 Squadron nicknamedTigers, is anair superiority squadron of thePakistan Air Force's Northern Air Command. It is currently deployed atPeshawar Air Base and operates theChengdu F-7PG aircraft.[1][2][3]
| No. 17 Squadron "Tigers" | |
|---|---|
_Pakistan_Air_Force.jpg) | |
| Active | 1 April 1957 – Present |
| Country |  Pakistan |
| Allegiance |  Pakistan Armed Forces |
| Branch |  Pakistan Air Force |
| Type | Fighter squadron |
| Role | Air Superiority |
| Part of | Northern Air Command |
| Airbase | PAF Base Peshawar |
| Nickname | Tigers |
| Mottos | ضرب مری کوہ شکن (Urdu for 'Nothing can withstand my Potent Strike') |
| Mascot | ABengal Tiger |
| Engagements | |
| Battle honours |
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| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | |
| Insignia | |
| Patch |  |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | |
| PAF Squadrons | ||||
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The No. 17 Squadron was raised on 1 April 1957 along with theNo. 16 Squadron "Panthers" atPAF Base Masroor equipped withNorth American F-86 Sabres.[1]
In April 1965, a series of battles took place over the thendisputed area ofRann of Kutch. During the skirmishes,F-86 Sabres from the No. 17 Squadron flew severalCombat Air Patrol andClose Air Support sorties in support of thePakistan Army. The squadron lost one Sabre (including the pilot Flying Officer Ehsanul Kareem) during the conflict when it suffered anengine flameout attributed to improper aircraft maintenance during repairs after his sabre was damaged by Indianack-ack. Karim remains one of the youngest pilot to beKIA in anF-86.[6]
During rise in hostilities with India, 10Sabres of the squadron were deployed atPAF Base Sargodha fromMauripur.[7] After Indian forces invaded Pakistan in an attempt to halt thePakistani advance in the disputedKashmir region, the No. 17 Squadron was assigned withClose Air Support missions in theSialkot,Lahore andKhem Karan sectors while also performing air defence operations in theSargodha District.On 19 September,Squadron Leader Azim Daudpota and his three wingmen (Flight Lieutenants SM Ahmed, Mujtaba &Saiful Azam) flyingNorth American F-86 Sabres were performingair strikes on Indian army positions at the Phillora area when they were intercepted by 2 IndianFolland Gnats of the IAF'sNo. 9 Squadron. In the ensuingDog fight,Flight Lieutenant Azam shot down one of theIAF Gnat while the second one managed to escape.In another strike mission, Squadron LeaderAzim Daudpota with Flying Officer Qadir and two moreF-86 pilots performed a strike mission on Indian army artillery batteries around the Jallo andAttari sectors which were bombing theLahore District, the formation managed to destroy severalartillery guns. This formation was highly commended by thePakistan Army field commanders in the Lahore Front.After thewar officially ended, the squadron had managed to destroy or damage 20-30Tanks and 100-150 military vehicles. In addition to that, the squadron also claimed to have killed about 150-200 Indian troops in theirClose Air Support missions.[2][3][8]
During the 1971 conflict, the No. 17 Squadron was deployed atPAF Base Rafiqui and equipped with theCanadair Sabre (Also known as the F-86E in thePAF). The squadron under the command ofWing Commander Mujtaba Qureshi flew 337sorties out of which 272 were combat ones. The combat sorties consisted ofAir Defence missions,Counter Air Strikes andClose Air Support missions atKasur,Hussainiwala andLahore sectors. However, Five Sabres of the squadron were damaged due to enemy fire while one was lost in an accident when it suffered anengine flameout, the pilotFlight Lieutenant Nayyer Iqbal was fatally injured.[9][2][3]
In May 1983, the No. 17 Squadron while operating fromSamungli Airbase along with theNo. 23 Squadron "Talons" was put on air defence alert after a surge in aerial intrusions byAfghan andSoviet warplanes during the Soviet-Afghan war. It performed 682CAP missions and 238hot scrambles. Unfortunately, the record of the aerial interceptions and other events was not maintained.[10]
| No. 17 Squadron Tigers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Role | Operational | Aircraft | Notes |
| Fighter-Bomber | 1957–1966 | F-86F Sabre | |
| Fighter-Bomber | 1966-1977 | Canadair Sabre | [11] |
| Air Superiority | 1977–2001 | Shenyang F-6C | [12] |
| Fighter | 2001–present | Chengdu F-7PG | |
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