No. 7 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force)
Encyclopedia
No. 7 Squadron, named the Bandits, is a Pakistan Air Force
fighter squadron.
Several aircraft were lost during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak Wars as well as accidents. This combined with spares supply difficulties due to United States arms embargoes resulted in the unit's bombers being transferred to No. 2 Composite Squadron, along with the No. 7 squadron's commanding officer Wing Commander S. Tanveer Hussain in August 1982. The unit was disbanded until 22 November 1982 when the squadron was re-established as No. 7 Tactical Attack Squadron and equipped with the Chinese Nanchang A-5C attack aircraft. The formal re-equipment ceremony held on 27 December 1983 included a fly-past by two B-57 and three A-5C.
Serious problems were being faced with maintaining the Nanchang A-5C and in the second half of 1988 the squadron was again disbanded. Squadron equipment and personnel were transferred to other units. The problematic A-5C were sent to China for overhaul and the Bandits squadron was re-established after their return on 13 November 1989, returning to operational status in a very short time. The squadron's role was changed to that of an Operational Conversion Unit
in May 1990. Despite pilots being converting to the A-5C, there were many aircrew fatalities caused by the relatively primitive ejection seat fitted to aircraft and the A-5 fleet was grounded. Aircrews were again transferred to other squadrons. The first batch of new zero-zero capable Martin-Baker ejection seats was delivered to PAF Base Masroor on 1 July 1991 and within 2 months the A-5C fleet began flying again.
It was later decided to re-equip the Bandits with Dassault Mirage IIIO
fighters procured from Australia in 1991. The A-5C fleet was transferred to other A-5C squadrons at PAF Base Peshawar and experienced Mirage pilots, referred to as "the magnificent 7" in the squadron history book, were brought to No. 7 Squadron. The Mirage III training flights began on 24 November 1991 after the first three aircraft were delivered from PAC Kamra's Mirage overhaul facility. On 15 February 1993 the unit's equipment was swapped with that of the No. 22 Squadron, an Operational Conversion Unit for Mirage III/5 fighters. The Bandits continued operating Mirages but a role had not been assigned to them yet.
In 1997 the unit received the ex-Australian Mirage IIIO fighters which had been upgraded under Project ROSE. These ROSE I fighters had been installed with new avionics, including FIAR Grifo M3 radars which allowed the squadron's role to be changed from tactical attack to multi-role. Air-to-ground weapons delivery and other exercises were conducted and the squadron was deployed over Balochistan
for air defence prior to Pakistan's nuclear tests in 1998.
! style="text-align: middle; background: white;" colspan="4" | No. 7 Squadron
Bandits
|-
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width="130" | Role
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width=" " | Operational
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width="180" | Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width=" " | Notes
|-valign="top"
| Deep interdiction
and strike
| 1960—1982
| B-57 Canberra
|
|-
| Tactical Attack
| 1982—1988
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
|
| 1989—1990
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
| Operational Conversion Unit
| 1990—1991
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
| Tactical Attack
| 1991—1993
| Dassault Mirage III
Mirage IIIO
|
|-
|
| 1993—1997
|
|
|-
| Multi-role
| 1997—
| Dassault Mirage IIIO ROSE I
|
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
fighter squadron.
History
The squadron was established as No. 7 Light Bomber squadron in June 1960, equipped with the Martin B-57 Canberra light bomber, commanded by Squadron Leader Ayaz A. Khan and assigned the airfield strike and deep interdiction roles. Based at PAF Base Mauripur, unit inventory comprised ten B-57B models and one dual seat B-57C model, which was nicknamed "Baba" and was kept airworthy despite being landed with nose-wheel up once and with all landing gear up twice.Several aircraft were lost during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak Wars as well as accidents. This combined with spares supply difficulties due to United States arms embargoes resulted in the unit's bombers being transferred to No. 2 Composite Squadron, along with the No. 7 squadron's commanding officer Wing Commander S. Tanveer Hussain in August 1982. The unit was disbanded until 22 November 1982 when the squadron was re-established as No. 7 Tactical Attack Squadron and equipped with the Chinese Nanchang A-5C attack aircraft. The formal re-equipment ceremony held on 27 December 1983 included a fly-past by two B-57 and three A-5C.
Serious problems were being faced with maintaining the Nanchang A-5C and in the second half of 1988 the squadron was again disbanded. Squadron equipment and personnel were transferred to other units. The problematic A-5C were sent to China for overhaul and the Bandits squadron was re-established after their return on 13 November 1989, returning to operational status in a very short time. The squadron's role was changed to that of an Operational Conversion Unit
Operational Conversion Unit
An Operational Conversion Unit is a unit within an air force whose role is to support preparation for the operational missions of a specific aircraft type by providing trained personnel. OCUs teach pilots how to fly an aircraft and which tactics best exploit the performance of their aircraft and...
in May 1990. Despite pilots being converting to the A-5C, there were many aircrew fatalities caused by the relatively primitive ejection seat fitted to aircraft and the A-5 fleet was grounded. Aircrews were again transferred to other squadrons. The first batch of new zero-zero capable Martin-Baker ejection seats was delivered to PAF Base Masroor on 1 July 1991 and within 2 months the A-5C fleet began flying again.
It was later decided to re-equip the Bandits with Dassault Mirage IIIO
Dassault Mirage III
The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
fighters procured from Australia in 1991. The A-5C fleet was transferred to other A-5C squadrons at PAF Base Peshawar and experienced Mirage pilots, referred to as "the magnificent 7" in the squadron history book, were brought to No. 7 Squadron. The Mirage III training flights began on 24 November 1991 after the first three aircraft were delivered from PAC Kamra's Mirage overhaul facility. On 15 February 1993 the unit's equipment was swapped with that of the No. 22 Squadron, an Operational Conversion Unit for Mirage III/5 fighters. The Bandits continued operating Mirages but a role had not been assigned to them yet.
In 1997 the unit received the ex-Australian Mirage IIIO fighters which had been upgraded under Project ROSE. These ROSE I fighters had been installed with new avionics, including FIAR Grifo M3 radars which allowed the squadron's role to be changed from tactical attack to multi-role. Air-to-ground weapons delivery and other exercises were conducted and the squadron was deployed over Balochistan
Balochistan
Balochistan or Baluchistan is a region which covers parts of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. It can also refer to one of several modern and historical territories within that region:...
for air defence prior to Pakistan's nuclear tests in 1998.
! style="text-align: middle; background: white;" colspan="4" | No. 7 Squadron
Bandits
|-
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width="130" | Role
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width=" " | Operational
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width="180" | Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: lavender;" width=" " | Notes
|-valign="top"
| Deep interdiction
Interdiction
Interdiction is a military term that refers to the act of delaying, disrupting, or destroying enemy forces or supplies en route to the battle area. A distinction is often made between strategic and tactical interdiction...
and strike
Airstrike
An air strike is an attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission. Air strikes are commonly delivered from aircraft such as fighters, bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters, and others...
| 1960—1982
| B-57 Canberra
B-57 Canberra
The Martin B-57 Canberra was a United States-built, twin jet engine light bomber and reconnaissance aircraft, which entered service with the United States Air Force in 1953. The B-57 was initially a version of the English Electric Canberra built under license. However, the Glenn L...
|
|-
| Tactical Attack
| 1982—1988
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
|
| 1989—1990
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
| Operational Conversion Unit
Operational Conversion Unit
An Operational Conversion Unit is a unit within an air force whose role is to support preparation for the operational missions of a specific aircraft type by providing trained personnel. OCUs teach pilots how to fly an aircraft and which tactics best exploit the performance of their aircraft and...
| 1990—1991
| Nanchang A-5C
|
|-
| Tactical Attack
| 1991—1993
| Dassault Mirage III
Dassault Mirage III
The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...
Mirage IIIO
|
|-
|
| 1993—1997
|
|
|-
| Multi-role
Multirole combat aircraft
A multirole combat aircraft is an aircraft designed to act in at least two different roles in combat. The primary role is usually a fighter—hence, it is as often called a multirole fighter—while the secondary role is usually air-to-surface attack. More roles are added, such as air reconnaissance,...
| 1997—
| Dassault Mirage IIIO ROSE I
|
Exercises
- Saffron Bandit 92 - exercise held in November 1992.
- High Mark 93
- High Mark 95
- DACT camp 1995
- ISAC 96 - inter-squadron armament competition, squadron achieved 4th place overall.
- Falcon Air Meet 2010