Mashhood Test Firing Range (MTFR) at

Tilla Jogian Tilla Jogian (; , meaning "hill of Jogi (caste), jogis "), also known as Balnath Tilla or Gorakh Tilla, is an abandoned Hindu temple and monastic complex located on the summit of the ''Tilla Jogian'' mountain in the Salt Range in the Jhelum Distr ...

is a military testing area and firing range located approximately west of

Jhelum Jhelum (; , ) is a city, located along the western bank of the Jhelum River, in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 21st largest city in Punjab and 31st largest in Pakistan, by population. Located in northern Punjab, it serves as the capital of the ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. It was used by the

Khan Research Laboratories The Dr. A. Q. Khan Research Laboratories (shortened as KRL), is a federally funded research and development laboratory located in Kahuta at a short distance from Rawalpindi in Punjab, Pakistan. Established in 1976, the laboratory is best know ...

(KRL) as a primary testbed for initial phase of its Ghauri program and now serves as the primary weapon test site for the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

Location

Tilla is an eastward continuation of the

Salt Range The Salt Range ( and Namkistan نمکستان) is a mountain range in the north of Punjab province of Pakistan, deriving its name from its extensive deposits of rock salt. The range extends along the south of the Potohar Plateau and the north ...

Jhelum District Jhelum District () is a district, located partially on the Pothohar Plateau and in Indus Plain, in Punjab, Pakistan. Jhelum is one of the oldest districts of Punjab. It was established on 23 March 1849. Jhelum is known for providing many sold ...

, 3,242 feet above the sea. From the Bunha torrent the range rises rapidly to the culminating peak of

and thence sinks as rapidly, but a series of low parallel ridges runs out across the valley of the Kahan. During

British Rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...

, the hill was sometimes used as a summer resort by officers of Jhelum District. A famous monastery of Jogi

fakir Fakir, faqeer, or faqīr (; (noun of faqr)), derived from ''faqr'' (, 'poverty'), is an Islamic term traditionally used for Sufi Muslim ascetics who renounce their worldly possessions and dedicate their lives to the worship of God. They do ...

s is situated here.

Current operations

The test range is known as ''Tilla Test Firing Range'' according to Pakistan Army sources. Pakistan Army conducts exercises at the Tilla Firing Range to check the performance of its unmanned tactical systems, missiles and range recovery operations. In 1998–99, the Test Firing Range served as a testbed for the

(KRL) during the development of the Ghauri program. Other operations included

Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) (; ) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when re ...

's range practice with the Pakistan Army, and subsequent missile testing by ASFC.

References

{{Use Pakistani English, date=January 2014 Jhelum District Rocket launch sites in Pakistan Weapons test sites Military installations in Punjab, Pakistan Military facilities of the Pakistan Army